Mill! 


ERKEIEY 

BRARY 


Date 


PERSONAL  LIBRARY 
OF 

JOHN  WM.    GREGG 

Valut 


TRUCK-FARMING 


AT    THK 


SOUTH. 


A  Guide  to  the  Raising  of  Vegetables  for 
Northern  Markets. 


BY 

DR.    A.    OEMLER, 

» » 

PRESIDENT    OF    THE    CHATHAM    CO.,    GEORGIA,    FBUIT    AND    VEGETABLE    GROWERS 
ASSOCIATION. 


NEW    AND    REVISED    EDITION. 


ILLUSTRATED 


NEW   YORK 

CHANGE  JUDD   COMPANY, 
62  &  54  LAFAYETTE  PLACE. 

1910 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1888,  by  the 

O.   JUDD    CO., 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  oi  Congress,  at  Washington. 


Add  to  ITibV 

GSfft 


PBINTED  IN   U.   S.   A. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGB 

Preface 5 

CHAPTER  I. 
Labor 7 

CHAPTER  II. 
Soil  and  its  Preparation 10 

CHAPTMR  III. 
Manures,  their  Kinds  and  Uses 15 

CHAPTER  IV. 
The  notation  of  Crops , 54 

CHAPTER  V. 
Weeds 59 

CHAPTER  VI. 
Seed  and  Seed  Sowing t 62 

CHAPTER  VII. 
Hot-Beds,  Cold  Frames  and  Weather 71 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Transplanting 82 

CHAPTER  IX. 
Water  and  Watering 87 

CHAPTER  X. 
Packing  and  Markets 90 

CHAPTER  XI. 
Insects  and  their  Remedies 96 

CHAPTER  XII. 
Asparagus 119 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
Beans,  Bush  or  Snap 130 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
Beet 134 

CHAPTER  XV. 
Cabbage 187 

<3>  822 


4  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XVI. 
Cauliflower 163 

CHAPTER  XVII. 
Cucumber . , 169 

CHAPTER  XVin. 
Egg  Plant  or  Guinea  Squash 175 

CHAPTER  XIX. 
Kale,  Borecole  or  Sprouts 178 

CHAPTER  XX. 
Lettuce 180 

CHAPTER  XXI. 
Onions : 181 

CHAPTER  XXII. 
Pea 191 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 
Potato 195 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 
Radish 207 

CHAPTER  XXV. 
Spinach ..208 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 
Squash 209 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 
Sweet  Potato 213 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 
Tomato 220 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 
Watermelon 229 

CHAPTER  XXX. 
Strawberry 236 


APPENDIX. 

Analyses  and  Values  of  Fertilizers 252 

Economy  in  Fertilization 257 

Formula  for  Composts •  -259 

Useful  Tables... 262 


PREFACE. 


THIS  work  is  written  in  the  hope  that  it  may  be  useful 
to  my  fellow  farmers  who  are  engaged  in  growing  vege- 
tables for  the  Northern  markets.  The  instructions  giv- 
en, and  facts  presented,  are  mainly  such  as  are  not  to  be 
found  in  the  few  works  extant  on  Southern  gardening, 
and  are  those  resulting  from  a  long  experience.  When  I 
commenced  to  produce  vegetables  for  shipment,  about 
twenty-six  years  ago,  there  were  few  or  none  following 
the  pursuit  as  an  exclusive  business  on  a  large  scale. 
The  consignments  at  that  time  consisted  mainly  of  the 
mere  surplus  crops  of  the  local  market  gardeners.  The 
business  has  gradually  developed  to  astonishing  propor- 
tions, principally  in  the  vicinity  of  the  larger  seaport 
cities  of  the  South.  One  of  the  results  has  been  that 
land  within  three  miles  of  Savannah,  for  instance,  has 
risen  in  value  one  hundred  and  fifty  per  cent,  within  the 
last  twelve  years.  While  the  crops  of  the  whole  area 
tributary  to  Savannah,  were  by  no  means  satisfactory 
during  the  past  season,  the  aggregate  quantity  of  pro- 
duce was  large.  The  following  statement  shows  the  pro- 
duce forwarded  to  the  Northern  markets  direct  from  the 
port  of  Savannah  by  the  steamships  alone. 

EXPORTS  (BY  STEAMERS)  OF  VEGETABLES  (AND  ORANGES  FROM  FLORIDA), 

FOR  THE   SEASON  ENDING  AUGUST  Slst,   1882. 


PORT. 

VEGET 

Crates. 

ABLES. 

Barrels. 

OKA! 

Boxes. 

•(IKS. 

Barrels. 

TOTAL  OF 
PACKAGES. 

New  York  

105,739 
50,787 
34,472 
4,132 

27,572 
12,696 
7,956 
630 

69,379 
2,723 
13,033 
9,837 

2,519 
907 
445 
174 

205,209 
67,113 
45,906 
14,773 

Baltimore   

Philadelphia  

Boston  

185,130 

48,854 

94,972 

4,045 

333,001 

The  season's  shipment  of  melons  to  New  York  aggre- 
gated 175,000. 

(5) 


6  PREFACE. 

Of  course,  failures  will  occur  in  this,  as  in  every  other 
pursuit;  but  where  favorable  conditions  of  soil,  situation, 
etc.,  exist,  sober,  economical,  industrious,  and  intelligent 
farmers  who  attend  closely  to  their  business,  can  make 
this  a  most  profitable  branch  of  agriculture.  As  an  in- 
stance of  successful  truck-farming,  I  may  cite  a  case 
within  my  knowledge.  Among  the  prosperous  gardeners 
near  Savannah,  are  three  brothers,  plain  farmers  from 
Effingham  County,  Georgia.  They  were  without  any 
special  advantages  as  educated  horticulturists,  but  under 
favorable  contingencies,  and  possessing  in  themselves  the 
above  named  desirable  characteristics,  they  commenced  to 
farm  on  their  own  account  seven  years  ago.  They  had  a 
borrowed  capital  of  one  thousand  dollars  wherewith  to 
operate  their  first  small  crop,  and  make  a  payment  on  ac- 
count of  their  purchase  of  land.  They  were  not  only  able 
to  pay  for  the  land  in  full,  from  the  proceeds  of  their 
crops,  but  have  acquired  in  the  aggregate  two  hundred  and 
seventy-five  acres,  making  at  various  intervals  cash  pay- 
ments ranging  from  one  thousand  five  hundred  dollars  to 
nine  thousand  one  hundred  dollars.  Besides  this,  they 
have  expended  various  amounts  in  buildings,  and  other 
improvements,  and  have  cash  on  hand  and  a  bank  account. 
One  of  the  brothers  has  also  invested  in  railroad  stock, 
and  the  elder  of  them  has  lately  purchased  a  house  and 
lot  in  town,  for  four  thousand  five  hundred  dollars,  while 
there  is  not  a  mortgage,  or  lien,  of  any  kind,  on  any  of 
the  property  of  the  brothers. 

A.  0. 


TRUCK-FARMING  AT   THE   SOUTH, 


CHAPTER  I. 
LABOR. 

Owing  to  the  perishable  nature  of  the  products,  the 
areas  at  the  South  devoted  to  truck-farming  must  remain 
confined  to  certain  limits.  These  will  be  near  the  larger 
cities  and  along  the  routes  of  railroads,  by  which  products 
can  be  safely  and  expeditiously  dispatched  to  market. 
Although  truck-farming  can  employ  but  a  comparatively 
small  proportion  of  the  labor  of  the  South,  it  must  be 
followed  according  to  the  same  principles  and  system 
that  govern  general  agriculture. 

The  negro  must  be  accepted  as  the  only  practical 
solution  of  the  labor  question,  and,  notwithstanding 
his  instability,  he  is  the  best  for  many  reasons.  It 
would  be  impolitic,  even  were  it  possible,  to  trust  to 
more  intelligent  and  energetic  laborers  from  abroad,  and 
mix  the  two  races  as  field  laborers.  No  dependence  could 
be  placed  upon  retaining  the  foreign  help,  as  his  greater 
energy  and  a  praiseworthy  desire  for  self-elevation  would 
soon  prompt  the  emigrant,  or  white  laborer,  to  change 
his  status  and  better  his  condition. 

Accepting  the  negro  as  the  God-given  instrument  for 
the  development  of  the  agricultural  resources  of  the 
South,  while  profiting  by  his  general  wastefulness  and 
improvidence  for  his  own  good  and  our  own,  it  should 
be  the  constant  aim  of  every  employer,  who  has  the  wel- 
fare of  southern  agriculture  at  heart,  to  elevate  the  labor- 
er. The  employer  can,  by  strict  justice,  fairness  and 

(7) 


8 


TRTJCK-FAKMItfG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 


even  kindness,  render  him  satisfied  with  his  lot,  to  the 
end,  that,  instead  of  being  an  irritating  element  of  the 
body  politic,  he  may  become  a  contented  and  useful  mem- 
ber thereof.  Exceptional  instances  of  self-elevation  and 
independence  should  be  correctly  appreciated  and  encour- 
aged as  a  spur  to  others. 

The  death  of  slavery  was,  so  to  speak,  the  birth  of 
truck-farming  on  an  extensive  scale  in  the  South- Atlantic 
and  Gulf  States;  indeed  it  would  otherwise  have  been  im- 
possible. I  was  probably  the  largest  slave-owner,  engaged 
in  vegetable  culture,  in  this  section*,  but  of  forty-five 
grown  negroes,  twenty-six  only  were  available  as  field 
laborers,  the  others  being  mechanics,  house-servants,  etc. ; 
and  at  no  time  could  I  have  controlled  more  than  that 
number  of  hands,  and  few,  or  none,  could  have  been 
hired.  At  the  present  time  there  are  in  the  vicinity  of 
Savannah  many  truck-farmers  who  employ  one  hundred 
to  two  hundred  laborers  during  the  picking  season. 

Ex-Governor  Hammond's  prediction :  that  the  negro, 
in  case  of  emancipation  would  "seek  the  towns,  and  rap- 
idly accumulate  in  groups  upon  their  outskirts,"  has  cer- 
tainly been  verified.  It  is  the  better  class  of  this  popula- 
tion, those  who  are  willing  to  do  some  work,  which  sup- 
plies the  truck-farmer  with  sufficient  labor  during  the 
pressing  season  of  gathering  his  crops.  The  table  below 
gives  the  usual  average  rate  of  wages,  without  board, 
paid  by  truck-farmers  in  the  vicinity  of  Savannah. 


For  men — 
For  women . 


60  c.  |1 24-15  c 
50  c.  i!2i-15c 


20  c.     $1.00 
20  c. 


n1 

~$o!75~ 


He. 
He. 


«*§  » 
I 


Ic. 
Ic. 


Three  baskets  fill  four  crates.     When  boys  and  girls 
are  hired  the  pay  is  at  half  rate  per  day. 


LABOR.  $ 

A  few  of  the  most  efficient  and  trustworthy  hands, 
who  are  particularly  useful  during  the  marketing  season, 
and  receive  an  increased  pay,  are  selected  to  care  for 
stock.  Some  farmers  pay  selected  hands  five  cents  per 
basket  and  one  cent  per  crate  additional  for  packing 
cucumbers  and  tomatoes;  while  others  use  the  gang  of 
day  laborers  for  the  purpose,  depending  upon  their  per- 
sonal supervision  to  prevent  injudicious  gathering.  Foi 
cutting  hay  with  scythes,  men  are  allowed  one-third  the 
cured  hay,  to  be  bought  (at  option  of  the  hand  or  not, 
as  may  be  agreed  upon),  by  the  employer  at  four  dollan 
per  rack-load  of  about  eight  hundred  pounds. 

The  hours  of  labor  are  from  sunrise  to  sunset,  with 
variable  allowances  for  meals  during  the  different  seasons 
of  the  year. 

During  the  shipping  season  there  is  no  fixed  time  for 
breaking  off  work;  but  extra  pay  is  generally  allowed  in 
case  of  much  night  work. 

If  the  hands  are  made  to  bestir  themselves  properly 
during  their  work,  it  is  not  unreasonable  they  should  ex- 
pect that  the  employer  will  not  delay,  or  hesitate,  in 
delivering  compensation.  Apart  from  considerations  of 
justice,  it  is  considered  his  policy  to  pay  promptly  after 
breaking  off  work  on  Saturday  and  before  the  stores  are 
closed.  Hands  of  the  better  order,  and  these  are  to  be 
encouraged,  may  be  depended  upon  to  present  themselves 
on  Monday  morning,  whether  in  funds  or  not;  but  by 
far  the  greater  majority  will  require  time  on  Monday  to 
get  rid  of  their  money,  if  they  have  had  no  opportunity 
of  so  doing  Saturday  evening  and  night,  and  will  be  ab- 
sent at  roll-call. 

According  to  the  report  of  the  Agricultural  Depart- 
ment of  1879,  the  latest  authority  at  command,  the 
average  rate  of  wages  paid,  without  board,  in  the  interior 
of  Georgia,  was  ten  dollars  and  seventy-three  cents  per 
month. 


10  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

CHAPTER  II. 
SOIL  AND  ITS  PREPARATION. 

The  requisites  the  truck-farmer  must  have  in  view  in 
selecting  a  location,  are  cheap,  safe,  and  expeditious 
transportation  of  produce  to  market,  convenience  for 
procuring  manure,  a  soil  adapted  to  the  crops  he  wishes 
to  grow,  and  sanitary  surroundings.  Other  conditions 
being  the  same,  water  carriage  is  preferable  to  that  by 
wagon.  If  in  the  selection  of  the  land,  one  is  confined 
to  a  single  soil,  he  should  select  one  consisting  of  a  mix- 
ture of  organic  and  inorganic  matter;  a  light,  deep,  sandy 
loam,  with  plenty  of  humus,  or  vegetable  matter.  Ex- 
perience has  shown  that,  without  this,  crops  will  not 
yield  as  well  in  proportion  to  the  quantity  of  manure 
applied.  Locations  in  the  immediate  vicinitv  of  the 
larger  coast  cities,  offering  the  best  facilities  in  the  way 
of  transportation  and  manure,  are  in  the  possession  of 
market  gardeners,  and  such  lands  are  generally  highly 
fertile.  The  truck-farmer  requiring  a  larger  area  is  com- 
pelled to  locate  several  miles  beyond  the  corporate  limits, 
on  the  line  of  a  railroad,  or  on  the  banks  of  a  navigable 
stream.  The  farm  will  often  be  one,  the  fertility  of  which 
has  been  shipped  off  to  Europe,  or  the  North,  in  the 
shape  of  cotton,  by  some  planter,  whose  measure  of  suc- 
cess was  gauged  by  the  rapidity  with  which  he  could  ex- 
haust his  soil.  The  renovation  of  the  land  will  be  the 
first  desideratum.  To  that  end,  and  the  consequent  pro- 
duction of  remunerative  crops,  the  plowing  under  of 
green  manures,  the  application  of  fertilizers,  proper 
preparation,  careful  tillage,  and  deep  plowing,' will  be 
necessary.  With  every  additional  inch  of  depth  in 
plowing  in  the  first  eighteen  inches  of  the  surface, 
the  farmer  gains  six  million  two  hundred  and  seventy- 


SOIL  AHD  ITS  PREPARATION.  11 

two  thousand  six  hundred  and  forty  cubic  inches  per 
acre  of  available  soil,  with  its  mineral  ingredients,  and 
constantly  increasing  capacity  of  gathering,  retaining, 
and  supplying  plant  food.  The  conditions  of  quality  of 
soil  and  climate  being  the  same,  the  productiveness  of 
soils  must  be  in  proportion  to  its  mass.  Sir  J.  B.  Lawes 
found  five  thousand  seven  hundred  pounds  of  nitrogen 
per  acre  in  the  first  nine  inches  of  his  soil.  The  Russian 
black  lands,  which  are  held  to  be  the  richest  in  the 
world,  have,  according  to  Prof.  Schmidt,  within  three  feet 
of  the  surface,  from  forty  thousand  to  forty-four  thousand 
pounds  of  nitrogen.  Several  analyses  of  Boussingault 
showed  from  twenty-five  thousand  to  thirty-two  thousand 
pounds  per  acre  beneath  the  surface,  and  a  soil  analyzed 
by  Prof.  Voelcker,  in  1868,  showed  eight  thousand  four 
hundred  and  twenty-five  pounds  per  acre.  The  practice 
of  deep  plowing  will  depend  upon  circumstances;  a  good, 
though  shallow  mould,  or  other  soil,  resting  upon  a 
sticky,  clay  subsoil,  would  not  be  benefited  by  being  at  once 
broken  up  deeply,  bringing  large,  hard  lumps  of  unfertile 
clay  to  the  surface,  and  deteriorating  the  physical  quality 
of  the  top-soil. 

DRAINAGE. 

Drainage,  more  especially  under  drain  age,  renders  a 
clay  subsoil,  when  moved  by  the  plow,  more  suscepti- 
ble to  pulverization,  and  in  such  case  a  thorough 
drainage  would  have  to  precede  deep  plowing.  Under- 
drainage  prevents  the  drowning  out  of  crops  after  heavy 
rainfalls.  It  increases  the  fertility  and  pulverization  of 
the  soil  by  admitting  air.  It  keeps  the  ground  moister 
in  a  dry  season.  It  prevents  the  washing  away  of  the 
soil  and  its  fertilizing  materials.  It  permits  the  farmer 
to  work  his  land  sooner  after  heavy  rain,  and  earlier  in 
the  spring,  and  it  prevents  the  land  from  becoming  sour 


12  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

in  wet  seasons.  The  total  absence  of  water  would  be  de- 
structive to  vegetation,  for  it  is  itself  necessary  to  plant 
life;  but  undrained  land  is  not  merely  wet,  it  becomes 
water-logged,  and  through  absence  of  air,  the  plants  are 
drowned  out.  When,  however,  water  passes  through,  and 
away  from  the  laud,  air  takes  its  place,  and  also  passes 
through  the  drains,  and  finds  its  way  into  the  overlying 
soil,  increasing  its  fertility  and  pulverizing  it.  The  rea- 
son why  drained  land  gains  heat,  and  the  temperature  of 
water-logged  land  decreases,  is  the  lack  of  heat-conducting 
power  in  water,  or  the  fact  that  air  can  not  be  transmitted 
downwards  through  water.  When  land  is  saturated  with 
water,  the  heat  is  expended  in  evaporating  the  moisture, 
instead  of  warming  the  land,  and  during  this  evapora- 
tion the  temperature  is  reduced.  Undrained  land  be- 
comes sour  in  wet  weather,  and  the  formation  of  sub- 
stances injurious  to  vegetation  is  encouraged.  The  ab- 
sorbing power  of  soil  is  so  great  that  ammonia  and  other 
fertilizing  agents  of  water  and  air  are  arrested  in  their 
passage  through  it,  thus  enriching  the  soil;  while  the 
water  on  undrained  land  washes  over  the  surface,  carry- 
ing off  into  the  water  courses  the  fertility  that  might  be 
saved.  In  undrained  land,  the  passage  of  moisture,  en- 
couraged by  evaporation  from  the  surface,  is  upwards, 
whereas  in  drained  land,  the  current  is  downwards 
to  the  level  of  the  drains,  supplying  the  roots  with 
aerated  moisture  in  condition  to  be  taken  up  by  them. 
An  excess  of  water  in  the  soil  produces  such  a  saturated 
state  of  the  atmosphere,  as  to  prevent  a  healthy  perspira- 
tory action  of  the  leaves  of  plants  growing  upon  it,  and 
growth  is  retarded. 

PREPARING  THE   SOIL. 

Efficient  drainage  being  provided,  the  land  should  be 
broken  up  and  pulverized  as  deeply  as  possible.     A  mass 


SOIL  AND   ITS  PREPARATION.  13 

of  sticky  clay  will  absorb  a  slight  amount  of  moisture, 
but  when  it  is  reduced  to  a  powdered  condition,  its  ab- 
sorbing power  will  be  very  much  increased.  One  hundred 
grains  of  fine  clay  left  for  twelve  hours  in  contact  with 
a  solution  of  caustic  potash,  the  latter  not  filtered  through 
it,  absorbed  one  thousand  and  fifty  grains  of  potash. 

Soils  have  the  power  of  separating  ammonia,  and  other 
bases  from  their  solutions,  and  of  separating  alkaline 
bases  from  the  acids  with  which  they  were  combined. 

Soils  possessing  the  greatest  amount  of  capillary  poros- 
ity, most  friable  and  mellow,  or,  in  other  words,  such  as 
are  in  the  best  agricultural  condition,  will  condense  the 
greatest  amount  of  fertilizing  material;  and  the  more 
they  are  pulverized,  the  better  will  they  resist  the  leach- 
ing action  of  water.  Soil  in  an  improper  physical  con- 
dition may  hold  fertilizing  materials  in  sufficient  quanti- 
ties for  a  full  crop.  It  will,  however,  yield  only  a  small 
percentage  to  the  vegetation  upon  it,  until  it  is  made 
friable,  and  so  becomes  conducive  to  growth.  Carbonic 
acid  is  one  of  the  chief  agents  in  this  process;  and  in 
order  that  this  acid  may  be  formed,  the  carbonaceous 
matter  in  the  soil  must  be  brought  in  direct  contact  with 
the  atmosphere.  As  long  as  the  soil  is  in  a  compact  con- 
dition, or  is  saturated  with  water,  carbonic  acid  is  not 
formed.  During  the  recent  severe  drouths  it  has  been 
observed  that  crops  growing  on  deeply-plowed  land  have 
suffered  the  least,  for  the  reason  that  the  greater  the 
mass  of  fine  soil,  the  greater  must  have  been  the  amount 
of  moisture  absorbed.  Heat  is  evolved  during  the  de- 
composition of  vegetable  matter;  and  the  darker  the,  soil 
is  from  decomposing  vegetable  matter,  the  warmer  will  it 
become.  The  warmth  of  light-colored  sands  is  attribut- 
able to  their  conductive  power.  Half  the  crop  depends 
sometimes  upon  the  previous  preparation  of  the  land. 
Owing  to  the  absence  of  a  covering  of  snow  and  of  suc- 
cessive freezings  and  thawings,  fall  plowing,  so  useful  at 


14  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

the  North,  is  destructive  of  fertility  at  the  South  and  is 
not  advisable. 

CULTIVATION". 

The  land  having  been  properly  prepared  by  plow- 
ing, and  sufficiently  manured,  and  the  crop  planted 
with  regard  to  the  capacity  of  the  soil,  the  most  im- 
portant matter  to  the  farmer  is,  thorough  culture,  or 
keeping  the  earth  fine  and  mellow  among  the  plants. 
Stirring  the  soil  can  scarcely  be  repeated  too  often  during 
the  earlier  periods  of  growth,  or  until  there  is  danger  of 
injury  to  the  roots  or  to  the  tops  of  growing  plants  by 
the  cultivator.  The  ground  may  be  too  wet,  but  never 
too  dry,  for  stirring;  because  the  more  frequently  it  is 
broken  up,  fined  and  aerated,  the  more  moisture  will  the 
soil  absorb  from  the  atmosphere.  This  is  an  operation 
that  should  be  performed  after  every  rain,  sufficient 
to  cause  incrustation  or  baking,  which  would  prevent  a 
free  admission  of  air  into  the  soil.  The  most  obvious 
benefit  of  stirring  the  soil  is,  the  destruction  of  weeds; 
for  no  crop  can  become  remunerative,  if  crowded  by 
weeds  which  deprive  it  of  air,  light,  moisture,  and  even 
a  part  of  the  fertility  of  the  soil.  A  war  of  extermination 
should  be  waged  against  weeds,  although  at  times  they 
become  a  necessary  evil  to  the  farmer  who  only  cultivates 
the  soil  between  the  rows.  Breaking  the  lumps  gives 
free  scope  to  the  finer  roots  to  secure  all  the  available 
nutriment  within  the  extent  of  their  ramifications,  as 
these  finer  roots  are  not  capable  of  penetrating  large 
clods,  and  thus  may  be  debarred  from  reaching  a  large 
part  of  the  food  contained  in  the  soil.  Thorough  and 
frequent  culture  of  the  soil  admits  air  to  the  rootlets  of 
the  growing  plant;  it  increases  the  capillary  attraction 
of  the  soil,  by  which  its  humidity  is  rendered  more  uni- 
form; by  presenting  a  larger  number  of  points  of  radia- 


MANURES,    THEIR   KINDS  AND   USES.  15 

tion,  the  deposit  of  dew,  so  beneficial  in  dry  weather,  is 
augmented;  the  temperature  of  the  soil  is  increased  by 
the  freer  admission  of  warm  rain  and  air,  and  by  the 
chemical  processes  thereby  facilitated;  and  finally  the 
fertility  of  the  soil  is  augmented  through  the  ammonia, 
nitric  acid,  etc.,  which  are  introduced  with  the  air.  The 
plow,  horse-hoe,  and  cultivator  are  to  be  used,  whenever 
available;  but  the  hand-hoe  must  always  be  relied  on  for 
the  finer  and  more  careful  work,  when,  particularly  in 
the  later  stages  of  the  crop,  only  superficial  stirring  is 
advisable.  When  plants  are  grown  in  a  crowded  state, 
darkness  and  want  of  air  elongate  the  stems  and  leaves, 
at  the  expense  of  the  roots  and  of  a  general  healthy  con- 
dition. The  operations  of  thinning  and  hand-weeding 
are  performed  in  connection  with  hoeing,  to  admit  a  free 
circulation  of  air  around  the  remaining  plants,  and  the 
sun  is  permitted  to  have  an  immediate  influence  upon  each, 
developing  the  desired  form,  bulk,  and  other  qualities. 


CHAPTER  III. 
MANURES,  THEIR  KINDS  AND  USES. 

Almost  any  soil  may  be  so  altered  in  its  character  by 
judicious  and  plentiful  manuring,  as  to  be  made  fertile 
enough  to  produce  good  and  remunerative  crops.  Manure 
is  the  most  indispensable  factor  for  success  in  market- 
gardening,  and  must  be  applied  in  much  larger  quantities 
than  in  any  other  branch  of  agriculture.  The  gardener 
should  never  be  restricted  by  a  short  supply  to  an  inad- 
equate application  of  manure,  as  the  superior  quality  and 
quantity  of  his  crops  will  generally  justify  an  apparently 
lavish  use.  Knowledge  of  his  soil,  the  peculiar  requisites 


16  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

of  his  crops,  a  judicious  rotation,  and  his  general  ex 
perience  will  teach  him,  where  and  when  he  may  econ- 
omize with  profit.  He  must  not,  however,  gorge  his 
land  with  manure,  without  rest  or  rotation,  but  seek  to 
make  it  just  rich  enough  to  produce  the  most  profitable 
crops.  Should  too  much  manure  be  applied,  which, 
however,  is  rarely  the  case  in  vegetable  culture,  there 
will  be  loss  of  the  most  costly  manurial  ingredient — 
nitrogen.  Location,  or  want  of  facilities  and  means, 
frequently  confines  the  gardener  to  forced  limits.  Those 
who  are  neither  conveniently  located  for  the  purchase  of 
stable  manure,  nor  own  sufficient  stock  to  secure  from 
their  droppings  a  sufficiency  of  barn-yard  manure,  must 
have  recourse  to  manurial  agents  to  be  named  hereafter. 
Astonishing  results  are  frequently  seen  in  gardens  near 
large  cities,  from  the  readiness  such  localities  offer  for 
procuring  the  best  manures. 

Agriculture  being  the  foundation  of  the  prosperity  of 
every  people,  and  successful  agriculture  being  impossible 
in  the  present  condition  of  the  earth's  surface  without 
fertilizers,  it  has  properly  been  said,  that  "manure,  even 
more  than  money,  forms  an  integral  part  of  a  nation's 
wealth." 

When  civilized  nations  properly  appreciate  the  value 
of  all  manurial  substances  (as  they  will  when  their 
territory  becomes  as  densely  populated  as  China),  none 
of  these,  as  at  present,  will  be  allowed  to  go  to  waste, 
and  the  productiveness  of  the  earth,  and  with  it  the 
wealth  of  nations,  will  be  enormously  increased.  Prog- 
ress in  this  direction  is  being  made.  Scientific  men  have 
pointed  out  the  sanitary  and  economical  necessity  of  deal- 
ing properly  with  excrementitious  manurial  substances. 
If,  during  the  past  century,  the  night-soil  of  many  of 
our  cities  had  been  incorporated  in  the  surface  soil  of 
the  surrounding  country,  instead  of  being  buried  under 
the  houses  of  their  citizens,  what  would  be  the  fertility 


MAHUBES,    THEIR   KItfDS   AKD   USES.  17 

of  the  soil,  and  what  the  probable  be  nefit  to  the  sanitary 
condition  of  the  cities? 

Manures  are  either  organic  or  inorganic,  according  as 
they  may  owe  their  composition  to  the  animate  or  in- 
animate world,  or  are  derived  from  vegetable  and  animal 
matters  of  all  kinds,  or  from  minerals. 

Every  kind  of  matter  which,  when  added  to  the  soil, 
promotes  the  growth  of  a  plant,  whether  by  being  itself 
directly  taken  up  by  its  roots,  or  by  chemically  altering 
any  heretofore  existing  constituent  of  the  soil,  so  that  it 
may  be  made  available,  or  by  physically  altering  its  tex- 
ture, may  be  considered  a  manure  or  fertilizer.  Every 
plant  consists  principally  of  the  gaseous  elements,  ni- 
trogen, oxygen,  and  hydrogen,  and  of  carbon  in  vary- 
ing proportions,  and  smaller  quantities  of  alkalies,  earths, 
silica,  sulphur,  and  phosphorus.  Chemical  analysis  has 
enabled  us  to  learn  the  exact  proportions  of  the  constit- 
uents of  plants,  as  well  as  the  composition  of  soils.  If 
chemical  forces  were  the  only  forces  of  nature  concerned 
in  the  growth  of  plants,  then  by  supplying  the  soil  with 
exactly  the  constituents  in  definite  quantities,  which 
chemical  analysis  has  shown  it  to  lack  for  the  full  matu- 
rity of  any  given  agricultural  crop,  rules  and  formulas 
could  be  devised,  so  as  to  insure  regularly  the  maximum 
yields  of  all  crops.  But  the  changes,  not  yet  fully  un- 
derstood, constantly  going  on  within  the  soil  and  upon 
its  surface  in  contact  with  the  atmosphere;  the  mutual 
chemical  reactions  of  the  various  soils  and  fertilizing  ma- 
terials, and  the  vital  actions  of  plants,  with  their  influence 
upon  the  soil  in  which  they  grow,  perhaps  even  upon 
the  surrounding  air,  still  more  inexplicable  and  wonder- 
ful, together  with  the  contingencies  of  weather,  render 
it  impossible  to  formulate  any  such  rules.  Exclusive  of 
the  crushing  effects  of  glaciers  and  other  agencies,  under 
the  gradual  influence  of  water  and  the  atmosphere,  the 
surface  of  the  rocks  have  become  sufficiently  pulverized 


18  TKUCK-F  ARMING   AT  THE  SOUTH. 

and  comminuted  to  support  lichens  and  other  of  the 
lowest  forms  of  vegetation,  which,  by  their  decay  in- 
creased the  film  of  soil.  These  were  followed  hy  plants 
of  a  higher  organization,  successive  generations  pre- 
paring for  those  which  followed  them.  Thus  organic 
constituents  accumulated,  until,  in  time,  every  arable 
soil  contained  in  varying  proportions  every  element 
of  plant  food.  The  variations  are  such,  however,  that  a 
soil  in  its  natural  or  original  condition  may  be  more  or 
less  deficient  in  one  or  other  constituent,  and  therefore 
be  better  adapted  for  one  crop  than  another.  Finding 
from  experience  or  analysis,  which  of  the  principal  con- 
stituents is  absent  in  a  soil,  we  may  supply  it  by  the  ap- 
plication of  a  special  fertilizer  for  the  production  of  a 
particular  crop. 

Humus,  or  vegetable  matter  undergoing  decay,  which 
gives  the  dark  color  to  fertile  soils,  disintegrates  miner- 
al substances,  supplies  large  quantities  of  carbonic  acid, 
ammonia,  and  nitrates,  and  is  indispensable  to  fertility; 
and  yet  the  direct  absorption  of  humic  matters  into 
plants  is  by  no  means  so  well  established,  as  not  to  be  a 
mooted  question  between  the  best  chemical  authorities 
and  vegetable  physiologists. 

Ammonia  and  nitric  acid  have  been  shown  to  be  pres- 
ent in  the  air;  but  it  is  generally  held  that  the  soil  must 
absorb  these,  or  they  must  be  conveyed  to  it  in  rain  water, 
before  they  can  be  generally  appropriated  by  plants. 
Yet  Peters  and  Sachs  proved,  experimentally,  that  a  bean 
plant  grew  and  flourished  by  direct  absorption  of  am- 
monia through  its  foliage  alone;  but  they  failed  with 
every  plant  but  the  bean,  which,  like  our  cow  pea,  is  a 
leguminous  plant.  Chemical  analysis  shows  that  the  le- 
guminosae  are  richer  in  nitrogenous  matter  than  any  other 
family  of  plants,  and  yet  we  know  that  our  cow  pea  will 
grow  on  the  poorest  soil,  deriving  its  nourishment  in 
part  from  the  atmosphere.  Ozone,  or  active  oxygen,  is 


MANURES,    THEIR   KINDS   AND   USES.  19 

emitted  by  plants,  and  the  more  abundant  the  foliage, 
the  greater  the  quantity.  By  the  action  of  this  ozone, 
the  nitrogen  of  the  air  may  be  converted  into  nitric  acid. 
Perhaps  the  cow  pea,  the  clover,  etc.,  are  more  active  in 
this  respect  than  any  other  plants. 

These  preliminary  observations  bring  me  to  the  first 
and  most  simple  and  cheapest  manner  of  conveying  fer- 
tility to  the  soil. 

GREEN   MANURING. 

As  soon  as  life  is  extinct,  all  organic  substances  begin  to 
decay,  and  the  richer  these  substances  are  in  albuminoids, 
or  such  as  contain  nitrogen,  the  better  are  they  adapted  for 
fertilizing,  and  the  more  rapid  will  be  the  process  of  de- 
cay. Under  like  circumstances,  albuminoids  of  animal 
origin  will  decompose  more  rapidly  than  those  of  vege- 
table origin.  All  green  succulent  plants  containing 
saccharine  and  mucilaginous  matters  and  woody  fibre,  fer- 
ment readily,  hence  the  advantage  of  plowing  in  green 
crops,  whether  of  natural  growth,  or  sown  for  the  pur- 
pose. No  plant  is  better  adapted  to  be  used  at  the  South 
for  restoring  fertility  by  green  manuring  than  our  cow 
pea.  The  analyses  here  given  show  it  to  be  rich  in 
albuminoids;  it  makes  in  our  climate  a  heavier  growth 
than  clover  in  any  part  of  the  world,  and  grows  on  soil 
much  too  poor  for  a  fair  crop  of  the  latter,  answering 
thus  both  the  demands  of  quality  and  quantity.  When 
plants  are  in  flower,  they  contain  the  largest  quantity  of 
soluble  matter;  it  is,  therefore,  when  plowed  under  at 
this  season,  under  ordinary  circumstances,  that  they  will 
afford  the  greatest  amount  of  soluble  nutritive  matter. 

In  heavy,  impervious  soils,  especially,  they  should  not 
be  turned  under  too  deeply,  or  else  the  absence  of  air  will 
retard  decomposition.  No  applications  of  commercial 
fertilizers  will  continuously  prove  beneficial  without  the 
presence,  in  the  soil,  of  decaying  .vegetable  matter,  or  feu- 


20 


TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE  SOUTH. 


mus,  and  green  manuring  is  the  most  efficacious  and 
cheapest  manner  of  supplying  the  land  with  large  quan- 
tities of  this  necessary  ingredient. 

It  should  be  practised  by  gardeners,  irrespective  of  the 
supply  of  stable  manure  they  may  be  able  to  command. 
But  for  those  located  at  a  distance  from  cities,  and  there- 
fore not  able  to  secure  a  sufficiency  of  barn-yard  manure, 
green  manuring  becomes  an  absolute  necessity. 

It  has  been  estimated  that  after  the  removal  of  a  crop 
of  clover  and  other  plants,  there  remained  in  the  soil,  as 
shown  in  the  following  tables,  a  large  amount  of  roots: 

TABLE  SHOWING  THE  QUANTITY  OP  ROOTS  LEFT  IN  THE  GROUND  AFTER 
HARVESTING  THE  CROPS— ALSO  THE  AMOUNT  OF  NITROGES  AND  ASH. 


HI 

|Ii 

i^  ^| 

Lucerne      .       

9,678.1 

136.4 

1,201  6 

Red  clover  .       

8,921.6 

191.6 

1,919  9 

Rye                  

5,264.6 

65.3 

1,747  8 

Swedish  clover  

•  5,004.3 

102.3 

9746 

Oats         

3,331.9 

26.6 

1,444.7 

Lupine              

3,520.9 

62.2 

550 

Wheat               

3,476 

23.5 

1,089  8 

3,222.5 

55,6 

670.7 

Serradella       

3,120.1 

64.8 

545.6 

Barley  

1,991.4 

22.8 

391.1 

ANALYSIS  OF  THE  ASH  OF  THE  ROOTS  IN  THE  FOREGOING  TABLE. 


4 

1 

1 

i 

i 

1 

|l 

c 

197  7 

24.2 

36  7 

26  4 

18  7 

38  5 

Red  clover 

262  9 

48  4 

58  3 

20  0 

26  1 

74  8 

Rye 

73  2 

14  3 

31  2 

43  3 

11  8 

24  4 

Swedish  clover  
Oats 

136.1 
85  5 

17.6 
11.2 

25.9 
24  8 

5.7 

18 

13.2 
8  8 

24.2 
29 

Lupine 

80  5 

11.2 

16  5 

3  5 

13  8 

Wheat 

76  7 

10.1 

28  4 

11 

7  4 

11  8 

English  peas 

71  7 

11 

11  2 

7 

9  4 

14  3 

Serradella 

79.8 

13  4 

8  8 

4  8 

9 

18  4 

Barley  

43.2 

5  5 

9.5 

3.5 

5.5 

11.2 

MANURES,   THEIR  KINDS  AND  USES.  21 

It  will  be  seen  by  these  two  tables  that  the  leguminous 
plants  are  especially  rich  in  the  three  most  important 
items:  nitrogen,  potash,  and  phosphoric  acid. 

These  roots  bring  up  from  the  subsoil  plant  food,  and 
in  decaying,  tend  to  deepen  the  soil  along  their  course. 
A  crop  of  cow  peas  would  probably  have  nearly  as  great 
a  weight  of  roots  as  clover,  and  in  the  neighborhood  of 
twenty  tons  of  tops.  The  latter  alone  would  contain 
one  hundred  and  sixteen  pounds  of  nitrogen,  principally 
obtained  from  the  atmosphere;  or  as  much  as  is  contained 
in  twelve  and  nine-tenths  tons  of  barn-yard  manure,  and 
directly  applied  to  the  soil.  Seven  pecks  to  two  bushels  of 
peas  would  cost  from  two  dollars  to  three  dollars,  and  the 
barn -yard  manure,  if  at  all  attainable,  nineteen  dollars 
and  thirty-five  cents,  applied  to  the  land  at  one  dollar 
and  fifty  cents  per  ton. 

ANALYSIS  OF   GREEN   COW  PEA  VINES. 

This  and  the  following  two  analyses  were  made  by 
Prof.  A.  E.  Le  Doux,  chemist  to  the  State  Board  of 
Agriculture,  of  North  Carolina. 


Water 72.87  per  cent. 

Ash 2.00 

Albuminoids....  1.85 

Cellulose 15.27 

Fat 0.21 

Carbohydrates..  7.86 


containing  ammonia,  0.35  ;  nitrogen,  0.38 


ANALTSIS  OF  THE  ASH  OF  COW  PEA  VINES. 

Ash 2.00  per  cent. 

Potash 14.80 

Soda 23.29 

Magnesia 6.74 

Lime 22.57 

Phosphoric  acid 9.28 

Sulphuric  acid 2.35 

Silica 1.08 

Chlorine 0.19 

Oxide  of  iron a  trace 

Carbonic  acid 19.70 


AT  THE  SOUTH. 


containing  ammonia,  7.12  Ibi. 


By  reducing  the  analyses  to  weights  and  measures  it  is 
found  that 

ONE  TON  OF  FRESH  COW  PEA  VINES  CONTAIN 

Water 1456.20  Ibs. 

Potash 5.92 

Boda 9.32 

Magnesia 2.70 

Lime 9.02 

Phosphoric  acid 3.72 

Sulphuric  acid 0.94 

Silica 0.42 

Chlorine 0.08 

Carbonic  acid 7.88 

Albuminoids 37.00 

Cellulose 305.40 

Fat 4.20 

Carbohydrates 156.20 

2000.00  Ibs. 

Boussingault  found  that  snow,  which  had  lain  for 
thirty-six  hours  on  the  soil  of  a  garden,  contained  ten 
times  as  much  ammonia  as  the  snow  of  the  same  fall 
from  a  contiguous  stone  terrace  immediately  after  falling, 
the  mulch  of  snow  having  interrupted  the  ammoniacal 
emanations  from  the  soil.  The  ammonia  of  the  soil  is 
constantly  undergoing  change,  and  fluctuating  in  quantity. 
This  most  important  article  of  plant  food,  and  most  ex- 
pensive, when  applied  artificially,  is  most  abundantly  ab- 
sorbed by  the  soil  in  summer  from  the  atmosphere,  and 
being  conveyed  to  it  by  rains  and  dews,  and  continually 
being  taken  up  by  vegetation,  it  is  volatilized,  evaporated 
with  water,  washed  away  and  lost.  Later  and  more 
exact  chemical  experiments  have  shown  that  the  soil 
contains  less  ready-formed  ammonia  than  was  formerly 

held  to  be  the  case.  Ammonia  in  dry  soil. 

Very  light  sandy  soil  from  birch  forest 0.00077  per  cent. 

Rich  lime  soil  from  beech  forest 0.00087 

Sandy  loam,  forest  soil 0.00012 

Forest  soil 0.00080 

Meadow  soil,  red  sandy  loam 0.00027 

Average 0.00056 

It  should  be  remembered  that  ammonia  is  only  half  as 
as  air. 


MAOTRES,   TSEIR  KltfDS  AtfD  USES.  23 

Rich,  alluvial  soils  with  decaying  vegetable  matter  con- 
tain ten  times  as  much,  and  fertilized  field  soils  still 
more.  Ammonia  is  only  found  in  the  surface  soil,  and 
generally  at  a  depth  of  six  feet  there  is  no  trace  of  it. 

Sir  J.  B.  Lawes  found  that  in  one  year  the  drain  water 
took  nitrogen  from  a  field  bare  of  vegetation  at  the 
rate  of  forty  pounds  per  acre;  from  a  field  of  wheat, 
which  after  the  harvest  contained  no  weeds,  twenty-five 
pounds,  and  from  a  field  upon  which  grass  seed  had  been 
sown  with  the  wheat,  and  continued  to  grow  on  the  stub- 
ble field,  only  five  pounds. 

POUNDS  OF  NITROGEN  WASHED   AWAY  PER  ACRE. 

From  soil  without  vegetation 40  pounds. 

From  soil  with  wheat,  15  pounds  retained  by  crop. ..  25      " 
From  soil  and  grasses,  15  pounds  retained  by  wheat. 

35  pounds  retained  by  grasses 5      " 

He  found  that  the  drain  water  was  much  richer  in  am- 
monia than  the  rain  water  which  fell  upon  the  field.  He 
also  found  another  fact  of  importance  to  our  subject  of 
green-manuring,  that  the  drain  water  carried  away  more 
ammonia  in  the  fall  than  in  any  other  part  of  the  year. 
It  is  therefore  exactly  at  this  season  that  the  soil  of  the 
truck-farmer  should  be  covered  by  a  dense  growth  of 
vines.  It  has  been  shown  that  even  a  perfectly  inert 
body,  like  a  board,  lying  upon  the  surface  will  improve 
the  fertility  of  the  soil,  by  preventing  evaporation. 

Now  the  mulch  of  pea  vines  acts  like  the  covering  of 
snow.  It  shades  the  soil  from  the  rays  of  the  sun,  by 
which  the  volatile  elements  of  fertility  are  exhausted  with 
the  vaporized  water;  it  keeps  the  soil  moist,  mellow,  and 
of  even  temperature;  and  as  a  secondary  matter  prevents 
the  growth  of  troublesome  weeds.  The  friable,  unbaked 
condition  of  the  surface,  as  has  been  before  stated,  is  an 
element  of  fertility,  by  facilitating  the  absorption  of  fer- 
tilizing gases  from  the  atmosphere.  Under  this  dense 
covering,  so  retentive  of  moisture,  the  carbonic  acid  dis- 
integrates particles  of  the  soil  and  prepares  it  for  plant 


24  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

food;  while  in  the  darkness  and  under  the  shelter  from 
winds,  nitrates  are  formed  and  absorbed.  It  will  be  seen 
that  the  increase  of  fertility  is  greater  than  could  be  ex- 
pected from  all  the  manurial  agents  in  the  pea  vines. 

Clay  soils,  being  more  retentive  of  moisture  and  pos- 
sessed of  greater  power  of  absorption,  are  less  benefited 
by  the  mulch  than  those  of  a  sandy  character. 

Like  the  questions  of  deep,  and  shallow  plowing  and 
deep  and  surface  manuring,  that  of  plowing  under  the 
green  vines,  or  allowing  them  to  dry  and  partly  rot  upon 
the  surface,  will  depend  upon  circumstances.  They  will 
contain  and  convey  to  the  soil  in  the  green  state  a  greater 
quantity  of  fertilizing  material  and  will  decompose  more 
rapidly.  If  intended  to  benefit  a  crop  to  be  put  in  soon 
after  they  have  reached  a  proper  stage  of  growth,  they 
must,  of  course,  be  plowed  under  green.  Four  weeks 
should  elapse  between  turning  under  the  vines  and  sow- 
ing or  planting  the  crop,  in  order  to  allow  a  sufficient 
time  for  the  most  active  decomposition  to  have  passed, 
lest  the  heat  evolved  by  the  great  mass  of  decaying  green 
vegetable  matter  might  be  detrimental.  For  a  spring 
crop, however, the  vines  should  be  left  to  die,  and  mulch  the 
soil  throughout  the  winter,  unless  indeed  a  second  green 
crop,  as  of  rye,  is  contemplated;  because  a  bare  fallow 
would  be  wasteful  of  the  fertility  supplied  by  the  pea 
vines.  It  is  an  error  that  the  bare  soil  deteriorates  dur- 
ing summer  only,  for  it  is  a  common  experience  that  a 
field  of  light  soil,  left  bare  after  a  late  crop  of  sweet 
potatoes,  shows  a  want  of  fertility  the  ensuing  spring. 

Two  crops  of  pea  vines  may  be  grown  in  a  season;  but 
after  an  interval  of  three  or  four  weeks.  To  turn  under 
a  heavy  growth  properly,  it  must  first  be  pressed  down  by 
a  field  roller  or  by  dragging  over  it  a  heavy  harrow  with 
the  teeth  turned  up;  and  it  requires  a  good  two-horse 
plow  with  a  large  sharp  revolving  coulter  attached.  To 
draw  the  vines  into  the  furrows,  a  heavy  chain  with  suf- 


MANURES,   THEIR  KINDS  AND  USES.  25 

ficient  slack  should  be  attached  to  the  whiffletree  and 
plow-beam.  Capt.  J.  W.  Me  Alpine  has  devised  an  iron  hook 
"  horn/'  which  is  attached  to  the  plow-beam,  as  in  figure 


Fl£.  1.— IBON  HOOK  OB  "  HORN  "  ATTACHED  TO  PLOW. 

1.  It  works  just  in  advance  of  the  plow  point;  and  on 
the  surface  its  curvature  corresponds  to  that  of  the  mould- 
board,  and  draws  the  vines  into  the  furrow.  The  same 
person  has  also  invented  a  roller,  which  has  a  set  of  five 
projecting  knives,  with  which  to  cut  the  vines  when  the 
growth  is  very  luxuriant.  By  driving  twice  over  the 
field  at  right  angles  the  vines  are  cut  in  ten-inch  lengths, 
and  can  be  turned  under  effectively.  The  roller  is  fixed 
to  shafts  or  a  tongue,  and  as  it  is  too  light,  a  weighted 


Fig.  2.— ROLLER  FOB  CUTTING  COW  PEA  VINES. 

box  is  attached  above  the  axle.  The  roller,  figure  2,  is 
fourteen  inches  in  diameter,  the  knives  five  inches  wide 
and  ten  inches  apart.  As  neither  of  these  inventions  is 
patented,  any  one  can  use  them. 

STABLE   MANURE. 

Stable  manure  is  a  complete  fertilizer,  and   is  of  all 
the  most  to  be  relied  upon  by  the  market-gardener,  as  it 

i 


26  TfctTCK-FARMIKG  AT  THE  SOUTS. 

contains  all  the  elements  of  fertility  in  available  con- 
dition. No  other  is  so  well  adapted  to  alter  the  physical 
condition  of  heavy  soils,  nor,  when  well  rotted,  better 
suits  those  of  a  sandy  nature;  nor  is  any  other  more  apt 
to  render  the  constituents  of  the  soil  available  as  plant 
food.  Gardeners  in  the  vicinity  of  cities  may  procure  a 
sufficient  supply  and  require  no  other  manure,  unless  for 
a  special  purpose  they  desire  to  supplement  it  with  a 
commercial  fertilizer  more  rich  in  nitrogenous  matter, 
such  as  Peruvian  guano,  fish  scrap,  etc.  Those  who  are 
not  so  fortunately  situated  must  utilize  their  smaller 
stock,  by  letting  it  form  the  basis  of  compost  heaps  to 
bring  about  and  sustain  the  fermentation  so  necessary  to 
break  down  the  crude  vegetable  materials  of  which  such 
heaps  partly  consist.  Manures,  to  be  promptly  effica- 
cious, should  be  in  a  state  of  at  least  partial  decompo- 
sition, so  that  the  elements  of  which  they  consist  may  be 
in  a  fit  state  to  form  new  combinations,  or  act  at  once  as 
plant  food.  To  bring  about  this  condition  without  waste 
of  material  and  expense  of  time  and  labor,  is  one  of  the 
problems  of  the  horticulturist.  Once  placed  within 
reach  of  the  absorptive  power  of  the  soil,  there  is  no  fur- 
ther loss  by  evaporation.  If  the  manure  pile  could  be 
merely  kept  sufficiently  moist  by  rains,  to  prevent  a  too 
rapid  fermentation,  it  might  be  advisable  not  to  keep  it 
under  cover;  but  the  rains  in  our  climate  are  too  often 
heavy  enough  to  leach  out  valuable  soluble  parts  of  the 
largest  heaps.  The  difference  in  the  composition  of  cov- 
ered and  uncovered  barn-yard  manure  is  here  shown. 


Barn-yard  manure. 
Nitrogen  equal  to  ammonia,  per  cent  
Organic  matter  soluble  in  water  

Covered. 
2.37 
642 

Uncovered. 
1.7 

1  82 

Phosphoric  acid  

030 

026 

Alkalies  

2.00 

0.80 

Exposed  to  the  weather,  piled,  turned  and  handled, 
without  proper  judgment  and  close  attention,  there  is 


,   TflEIE  KttffcS  AKD   tTSES. 


danger  of  loss,  besides  the  expense  of  time  and  labor. 
The  general  agriculturist,  particularly  on  heavy  soils, 
whose  crops  are  of  Blower  growth,  may  apply  manure 
green  or  fresh  from  the  stables,  when  its  effects  are  often 
so  permanent  as  to  be  perceptible  for  many  years ;  but  the 
market-gardener's  aim  is  to  produce  early  crops  of  veg- 
etables, and  his  manures  must  be  in  a  readily  available 
condition.  He  wants  no  permanent  manures.  Perma- 
nence and  insolubility  are,  in  this  case,  synonymous. 
Luxuriant  growth  is  an  indication  of  the  solubility  of  his 
fertilizers.  He  wants  his  manure  pile  to  undergo  such 
an  amount  of  slow  fermentation,  as  to  break  down  the 
coarse  fibrous  vegetable  matter  it  contains,  so  as  to  admit 
its  being  readily  cut  with  a  spade,  and  thus  also  to  reduce 
its  bulk. 

COMPOSITION  OF  FRESH  AND  DECOMPOSED  STABLE  MANURE. 


Water. 

Organic 
Matter. 

£       l£    .                   INGBBDIEXTS  OF  ASH. 

ll  }3  1 

|*  f|  | 

i 

v 
1 

Magnesia 

5 

r 

Silicate  and 
Sand. 

Chlorine  and 
Fluorine. 

Stable  Manure  

71024644.14.55.21.5 
75019258.05.06.31.9 
79014565.05.85.01.3 

5.71.42.11.2 
7.01.82.61.6 
8.81.83.011.3 

12.5 
16.8 
17.0 

1.5 
1.9 
1.6 

do.  moderately  rotted., 
do.  thoroughly  rotted.. 

If  piled  so  loosely  as  to  admit  air  freely  and  be  suffi- 
ciently moist,  it  will  undergo  fermentation  so  rapidly  as 
to  heat  or  firefang,  and  large  quantities  of  the  valuable, 
volatile  carbonate  of  ammonia  will  evaporate,  and  the 
manure  be  rendered  comparatively  valueless.  To  avoid 
this  too  rapid  fermentation,  the  pile  may  be  broken 
down  and  turned  whenever  it  begins  to  heat,  until  the 
process  ceases  to  be  too  active.  The  escape  of  ammonia 
may  be  checked  by  mixing  land  plaster  (sulphate  of 
lime)  with  each  load,  so  as  to  fix  the  ammonia  as  a  sul- 
phate (which  is  not  volatile).  The  gardener  near  the 


28  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

city,  whose  large  pile  daily  receives  considerable  acces- 
sions, may  resort  to  packing  it  so  tightly  as  to  limit  the 
access  of  air,  and  consequently  the  rapidity  of  fermenta- 
tion, until  near  planting  time,  or,  if  possible  and  bet- 
ter still,  he  may  keep  it  too  moist  for  rapid  decay  by 
adding  night-soil  from  the  city,  which  will  at  the  same 
time  improve  its  quality. 

Gardeners  near  cities  who  accumulate  a  large  stock  of 
stable  manure,  do  not  generally  place  it  under  shelter, 
notwithstanding  the  accruing  loss,  but  deposit  it  in 
suitable  quantities  for  each  field  in  a  single  pile,  upon 
the  headland  convenient  for  use,  and  compact  it  by  mere- 
ly driving  across  the  pile  at  each  delivery.  Never  more 
than  four  hundred  wagon  loads  are  deposited  in  a  pile. 
If,  when  finished,  the  heaps  were  covered  completely  with 
soil  to  the  thickness  of  two  or  three  inches,  the  escaping 
ammonia  would  be  absorbed  and  fermentation  retarded. 
It  must  be  borne  in  mind,  that  even  in  winter  we  must 
limit  the  process  of  fermentation,  and  not  encourage  it, 
as  is  sometimes  necessary  in  the  Northern  States;  and 
we  must  also  avoid  leaching. 

The  fermentation  of  stable  manure  may  be  retarded 
by  the  admixture  of  substances  not  liable  to  rapid  fer- 
mentation. The  gardener  in  the  country  may  resort  to 
composting  it  with  muck,  woods-earth,  or  even  good 
garden  soil,  dry  and  pulverized  salt-mud,  or  the  same 
material  in  the  shape  of  a  soft  mush  in  order  to  avoid 
getting  it  in  the  form  of  large  lumps  into  his  manure, 
and  may  also  use  green  marsh-grass  (Spar  Una  strict  a),  if 
he  be  located  on  "the  salts."  Vegetable  refuse  of  every 
kind,  with  leaves  from  the  woods,  slops  from  the  kitchen 
and  wash-house,  with  the  dung  of  those  domestic  animals 
which  does  not  readily  heat,  as  that  of  neat  cattle  and 
swine,  in  short,  everything  available  that  will  supply 
plant  food  may  be  added  to  the  heap.  The  dung  of  all 
kinds  of  poultry,  the  urine  and  night-soil  of  the  farm, 


MANURES,   THEIR   KINDS   AND   USES.  29 

scraps  of  leather  and  woolen  cloth  and  waste  feathers 
will  heat;  but  they  also  should  go  into  the  compost -heap. 

In  the  application  of  manure,  the  kind  of  crop,  previ- 
ous fertility  of  the  soil  and  the  quality  of  the  manure 
will  govern  the  quantity. 

The  amount  and  manurial  value  of  the  excrement  void- 
ed by  an  animal  depends  upon  the  quality  of  its  feed.  The 
manurial  value  of  hulled  cotton-seed  meal  is  more  than 
twelve  times  that  of  wheat-straw,  three  times  that  of 
clover-hay,  twice  that  of  wheat-bran,  ten  times  that  of 
mangel  wurzel,  and  thirty  times  that  of  common  turnips. 
Of  all  vegetable  substances  used  as  cattle  feed,  hulled 
cotton-seed  meal  is  the  richest  in  nitrogen,  phosphoric 
acid  and  potash,  the  most  essential  requisites  in  the 
growth  of  plants,  and  these  will  appear  again  most  abun- 
dantly in  the  dung.  The  money  value  of  the  manure 
from  different  articles  of  food  according  to  calculations 
of  Sir  J.  B.  Lawes,  based  upon  the  value  of  nitrogen, 
phosphoric  acid  and  potash  in  leading  commercial  fertil- 
izers, are: 

VALUE  OF  A  TON  OF  MANURE  FROM  DIFFKRENT  KINDS  OF  FOOD. 

Ptr    ton. 

Cotton-seed  meal $27.86 

Linseed  cake 19.73 

Beans  15.73 

Wheat-bran 14.59 

Clover-hay. 9.64 

Indian  meal 6.63 

Oat-straw 2.90 

Turnips 0.80 

Block  estimated  that  a  horse  fed  on  one  hundred  pounds 
of  hay  will  void  one  hundred  and  seventy-two  pounds  of 
fresh  dung;  one  hundred  pounds  of  oats  gave  two  hun- 
dred and  four  pounds;  and  one  hundred  pounds  of  grass 
gave  forty-three  pounds  of  dung.  A  horse  furnishes,  if 
well  fed,  about  twelve  thousand  pounds  of  solid  dung 
and  three  thousand  pounds  of  urine  annually.  The  ma- 
nure from  the  street-car  stables  in  New  York  was  found 


30  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

by  Johnson  to  contain  0.53  per  cent,  of  nitrogen. 
Reckoning  two-thirds  of  the  solid  and  fluid  droppings 
saved,  we  have  ten  thousand  pounds,  or  five  tons  of 
manure  to  each  horse,  containing  fifty-three  pounds  of 
nitrogen. 

In  his  method  of  applying  his  manure  the  sensible 
gardener  will  be  governed  by  the  nature  of  his  soil  and 
manure,  and  by  the  kind  of  crop  he  wishes  to  grow. 

Half  an  inch  of  rain,  although  amounting  to  fourteen 
thousand  gallons,  or  fifty-six  tons  to  the  acre,  would  not 
penetrate  deeply  into  a  heavy  soil,  hence  in  such  a  soil 
long,  partly  unfermented  dung  would  not,  if  buried 
deeply,  find  sufficient  moisture  and  air  to  support  fermen- 
tation and  dissolve  out  the  manure  for  the  benefit  of  the 
crop.  A  sandy  soil  favors  decomposition,  being  more 
permeable  to  air  and  moisture,  and  as  roots  penetrate 
more  deeply  in  a  light  soil,  unfermented  dung  might  be 
placed  five  or  six  inches  deep  in  such  a  soil.  Upon  a 
dry,  hot,  light  soil,  manure  of  that  description  would  be 
too  heating  if  near  the  surface.  At  the  rate  of  eight 
tons  of  manure  to  the  acre,  half  an  inch  of  rain  would 
furnish  nearly  a  gallon  to  every  pound,  and  in  the  case  of 
well-rotted  or  soluble  manure,  placed  near  the  surface  of 
either  heavy  or  sandy  land,  would  convey  the  ingredients 
of  plant  food  in  a  dissolved  state  to  the  roots  of  plants. 
On  either  heavy  or  sandy  soil,  therefore,  well-rotted  ma- 
nure should  be  intimately  mixed  with  the  soil  to  the 
depth  of  three  or  four  inches,  when  applied  broadcast, 
and  the  nearer  the  surface,  the  finer  should  the  soil  be 
pulverized  to  increase  its  absorptive  power.  Unless  un- 
fermented long  manure  is  buried  in  a  light  soil,  it  had 
better  be  not  incorporated,  but  applied  upon  the  soil  as 
a  mulch.  Such  manure  commingled  with  a  heavy  soil 
would  benefit  it  physically  by  rendering  it  more  open  for 
admission  of  air,  and  the  heat  evolved  would  accelerate 
growth.  The  observations  above  apply  to  Ian4  well- 


MANURES,    THEIR   KINDS   AND   USES.  31 

drained,  especially  under-drained.  If  badly  drained  and 
presenting 'a  slope  in  any  direction,  the  washing  surface- 
water  would  carry  off  a  large  part  of  the  soluble  manure 
from  the  surface. 

Manure  for  close  crops,  whenever  a  large  supply  per- 
mits, should  be  applied  broadcast,  by  preference;  but 
generally  economy  and  the  desire  for  a  vigorous  start 
will  demand  its  application  in  the  drill.  Only  in  the  case 
of  plants  standing  far  apart,  as  melons,  is  manuring  in 
the  hill  practicable,  unless  only  a  part  of  the  manure  is 
so  applied.  The  great  majority  of  the  roots  would  soon 
extend  beyond  its  limits,  and  the  plant  would  suffer  in 
the  later  stages  of  growth. 

BARN-YARD   MANURE. 

This  consists  of  the  mixed  droppings  of  such  animals 
as  are  allowed  to  run  in  an  open  lot,  the  surface  of  which 
is  strewn  with  more  or  less  of  absorbents.  It  may  be  re- 
garded as  a  combination  of  the  solid  and  fluid  excrements 
of  the  different  animals,  and  is  of  variable  quality,  owing 
to  waste  by  leaching  rains.  If  horses  and  mules  alone 
are  enclosed,  its  value  would  be  that  of  an  inferior  stable 
manure.  Notwithstanding  its  variable  value,  it  is  often 
used  as  a  standard. 

COW    MANURE. 

Although  the  fresh,  solid  excrement  of  the  horse  is 
richer  in  ammonia  than  that  of  neat  cattle,  the  latter, 
on  the  other  hand,  is  not  subject  to  loss  by  heating.  It 
contains  more  urea  (supplying  nitrogen)  in  the  urine,  and 
there  is  a  greater  quantity  both  of  solid  and  liquid  excre- 
ment voided;  hence  the  manure  of  a  cow  must  be  con- 
sidered more  valuable  than  that  of  a  horse,  particularly 
when  the  former  has  had  nutritious  food, 


32  TRUCK-FAKMIKG   AT  THE  SOUTH. 

A  cow,  fed  upon  twenty-four  pounds  of  hay  and  twelve 
and  a  half  pounds  of  Irish  potatoes,  voided  daily  about 
one  bushel  of  solid  excrement,  containing  two  and  a  half 
pounds  of  salts  of  ammonia,  potash,  soda  and  lime. 

The  annual  product  of  a  cow  is  thirty-one  thousand 
and  twenty-five  pounds  of  dung,  of  which  four  thousand 
eight  hundred  pounds  is  organic  matter,  containing: 

189  Ibs.  ammonia, 
71  Ibs.  phosphate  of  lime, 
37  Ibs.  sulphate  of  lime, 
77  Ibs.  carbonate  of  lime, 
24  Ibs.  common  salt, 
15  Ibs.  sulphate  potash. 

The  yard  manure  of  a  full-grown  ox  is  considered 
equal  to  that  of  a  horse  and  a  half,  or  ten  to  fifteen  sheep. 

One  cord  fresh  cow  dung  weighs 9,298  Ibs. 

One  cubic  foot  of  old,  well-rotted  ox  manure  weighs. ..  58  " 
"  "  "  "  fresh  "  "  "  ...  48  " 

"  "  "  "  well-rotted  stable  manure  "  ...  39  " 
•«  "  "  fresh  "  "  "  ...  30  "* 

The  amount  of  urine  voided  annually  by  a  cow  is 
from  twelve  thousand  to  fifteen  thousand  gallons. 
In  every  hundred  pounds: 

Of  cattle  urine  are 4.00  Ibs.  of  urea. 

"   horseurine 0.70    "    "      " 

"  human  urine 236    "    "     " 

"  sheep  urine 2-80    "    "     " 

"  hog  urine 5.64    "    "     "f 

The  composition  of  urea  ie,  according  to  Dr.  Prout, 
carbon,  19.99;  oxygen,  26.66;  hydrogen,  6.66;  nitrogen, 
46.66.  The  nitrogen  is  equal  to  56.66  parts  of  ammonia. 
Owing  to  the  non-heating  character  of  cow  manure,  it  is 
well  adapted  to  sandy  land;  and  in  consequence  of  the 
smaller  quantity  of  vegetable  matter  to  undergo  fermen- 
tation, it  has  not  the  physically  beneficial  effects  upon 
heavy  lands.  The  value  of  cow-penning  land  and  its 
permanent  effects  (sometimes  noticeable  for  twenty  or 

*  Dana's  Muck  Manual, 
t  Daua'8  Muck 


MANURES,    THEIR   KINDS   AND   USES.  33 

more  years)  is  probably  owing  to  the  fact  that  none  of  the 
urine  is  lost.  On  light  sandy  land  it  is  serviceable 
through  the  treading  and  compacting  of  the  soil. 

The  absence  of  cut-worms  on  land  recently  cow-penned 
is  probably  attributable  to  the  mulch  of  dung  and  the  con- 
sequent absence  of  vegetation  in  the  late  summer,  and  not 
to  the  urine,  as  is  generally  supposed.  When  a  gardener 
owns  a  number  of  neat  cattle,  and  is  located  conveniently 
on  the  salt  marshes,  he  can  collect  a  quantity  of  good 
manure,  particularly  well-suited  to  his  sandy  land,  by 
penning  his  stock  upon  alternate  layers  of  salt-mud  and 
green  marsh-grass. 

ANALYSES  OF  MARSH-GRASS,  OAT-STRAW  AND  MEADOW  HAY.  COMPARA- 
TIVE MONEY  VALUE  ;  HAY  BEING  ONE  DOLLAR  FOR  THE  SAME  WEIGHT  : 


Salt  marsh  grass. . . 

Oat  straw 

Meadow  hay 


ORGANIC 
SUBSTANCE. 


Total. 


73.7 
81.7 
79.5 


39.7 
39.9 
47.4 


2.2 
1.3 
5.4 


36.7 
37.4 
41.1 


0.8 
0.6 
0.9 


$0.68 
0.63 
1.00 


Barn-yard  manure  taken  as  a  standard  of  comparison, 
the  weights  opposite  the  manures  below  show  the  num- 
ber of  pounds  which  would  be  equal  in  effect  to  one  hun- 
dred pounds  of  the  former: 

Barn-yard  manure 100 

Solid  excrements  of  the  cow 125 


Solid 

Liquid 

Liquid 

Mixed 

Mixed 

Mixed 

Mixed 


horse * 73 

cow 91 

horse 16 

cow 98 

horse 54 

sheep 36 

ho. 64 


MANURE   OF  HOGS. 


The  urine  of  man  and  that  of  the  hog  contain  phos- 
phates, of  which  that  of  the  ox  ajid  horse  is  destitute. 


34:  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

The  pig  voids  a  larger  quantity  of  urine  than  any  other 
domestic  animal  The  manure  from  fattening  hogs  is 
very  valuable,  but  it  contains  a  peculiar  volatile  sub- 
stance which  gives  to  roots  and  bulbs  to  which  it  is  ap- 
plied a  disagreeable  taste.  Hog-pens  should  be  liberally 
supplied  with  absorbents. 

SHEEP  MANURE 

contains  less  vegetable  fibre  than  that  of  cattle,  and  may 
be  classed  with  hog  manure;  but  the  nitrogenous  matter 
being  more  abundant,  it  is  a  heating  manure  when 
piled  and  moistened.  If  penned,  one  sheep  can  ma- 
nuiv  ten  and  a  half  feet  square  in  a  night.  It  is  too 
rich  in  ammonia  to  be  allowed  to  come  in  direct  contact 
with  seeds  or  the  roots  of  plants,  and  should  be  composted 
or  mixed  with  the  soil. 

POULTRY   MANURE. 

The  dung  of  all  domestic  fowls  and  birds  generally  has 
marked  manurial  properties  on  account  of  the  large 
amounts  of  ammonia  and  phosphate  it  contains.  Like 
sheep  manure,  Peruvian  guano  and  all  other  fertilizers 
rich  in  ammonia,  it  should  not,  in  its  fresh,  undiluted 
state,  be  permitted  to  come  in  immediate  contact  with 
the  roots  of  plants,  nor  with  the  seed.  The  floors  of  the 
poultry-houses  should  be  strown  with  finely  powdered 
muck  or  woods-earth  and  land  plaster,  to  fix  the  ammonia 
and  to  purify  the  atmosphere.  Subsequently  the  manure 
should  be  composted  before  being  applied  to  the  field. 

PERUVIAN    GUANO. 

The  Peruvian,  the  other  South  American  and  the  Afri- 
can guanos  being  the  accumulated  dung  of  sea-birds  which 


MANURES,   THEIR  KINDS   AND   USES.  35 

subsisted  upon  fish,  contain  considerable  quantities  of 
phosphate  of  lime  from  the  bones,  and  ammonia  from 
the  flesh  of  the  fish.  According  to  the  quantity  of  rain 
in  the  climate  whence  they  are  obtained,  the  amount  of 
ammonia  will  vary.  Their  value  depends  principally 
upon  the  quantity  of  ammonia,  which  already  exists,  or 
may  be  formed  by  their  further  decomposition.  Next  to 
ammonia,  the  soluble  phosphoric  acid  is  the  most  valuable 
constituent,  and  after  this  potash  is  next  in  importance. 
Guano  from  the  Chincha  Islands  contained  from  fifteen 
to  twenty  per  cent,  of  ammonia;  but  notwithstanding 
the  exhaustion  of  the  entire  supply,  and  that  the  guanos 
from  other  sources,  as  the  Guanape,  are  poorer  in  am- 
monia, and  contain  more  of  the  less  valuable  constituents, 
Peruvian  guano  retails  at  the  former  price. 

Proprietors  of  city  stables  make  no  provision  to  save  the 
most  valuable  portion  of  the  droppings  of  their  stock — the 
urine — and  gardeners  near  cities  supplement  their  stable 
manure  with  strong,  soluble  commercial  ammoniacal  fertil- 
izers, by  which,  in  a  measure,  they  do  away  with  the  neces- 
sity of  completely  fermenting  it.  Track  farmers  in  the 
vicinity  of  Savannah  now  prefer  the  highly  ammoniated 
commercial  fertilizers,  to  the  inferior  Peruvian  guano 
on  the  market,  both  for  side  dressing,  and  for  supple- 
menting their  stable  manure.  Gardeners  need  not  be 
chemists,  but  they  need  to  profit  by  the  teachings  of  the 
chemist,  or  be  swindled  by  dishonest  manipulators  of  the 
article  upon  which  their  success  depends.  The  gardener 
who  purchases  an  artificial  fertilizer  should  know  what 
element  his  land  or  crop  requires.  The  law  enacts  that 
each  package  of  a  fertilizer  shall  be  accompanied  by  a 
chemical  analysis  of  its  contents.  The  Agricultural  De- 
partment of  Georgia  has  published  a  tariff  of  values  of 
the  important  ingredients  in  fertilizers,  by  means  of  which 
any  one  may  calculate  the  approximate  agricultural  value 
per  ton  of  any  such  fertilizer.  (See  Appendix. )  These 


36  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

values  are  not  exact.  The  result  of  their  use  depends 
upon  too  many  contingencies.  These  trade  values  are 
based  upon  the  value  of  the  ingredients  in  a  fertilizer 
of  assured  merit. 

COMMERCIAL   FERTILIZERS. 

Appreciating  the  great  importance  to  Southern  agricul- 
turists, that  they  should  make  no  indiscriminate  and 
wasteful  use  of  commercial  fertilizers,  nor  be  swindled 
by  the  knavery  of  dishonest  manipulators,  I  enumerate 
below  the  conclusions,  as  advice,  of  one  better  able  to 
tender  it  than  myself. 

Prof.  Atwater,  of  the  Connecticut  Experimental  Station, 
reaches  the  following  conclusions  with  respect  to  the  use 
of  artificial  fertilizers: 

First. — Soils  vary  widely  in  their  capacities  for  supply- 
ing crops  with  food,  and  consequently  in  their  demand 
for  fertilizers. 

Second. — Some  soils  will  give  good  returns  for  manur- 
ing; others,  without  previous  amendment,  by  draining, 
irrigation,  tillage,  or  use  of  lime,  marl,  etc.,  will  not. 

Third. — Farmers  cannot  afford  to  use  commercial  fertil- 
izers at  random,  and  it  is  time  they  understood  the  reason 
why. 

Fourth. — The  right  materials  in  the  right  places,  bring 
large  profits.  Artificial  fertilizers,  rightly  used,  must 
prove  among  the  most  potent  means  for  the  restoration 
of  our  agriculture. 

Fifth. — The  only  way  to  find  what  a  soil  wants,  is  to 
study  it  by  careful  observation  and  experiments. 

Sixth. — Success  in  farming,  as  in  other  business,  re- 
quires the  use  of  brains. 

The  controversy  between  the  advocates  of  home-made 
manure  and  of  artificial  fertilizers  may  be  reduced  to  the 
following  rules: 


MANURES,  THEIR  KINDS  AND  USES.  3? 

First. — No  land  will  remain  fertile  for  a  long  number 
of  years,  if  continuously  manured  with  a  special  fertil- 
izer alone,  but  will  require  a  rotation  of  manures,  as  well 
as  of  crops. 

Second. — Land,  to  respond  properly  to  artificial  fer- 
tilizers, must  be  well  stored  with  vegetable  matter. 

Third. — After  the  gardener  has  accumulated  as  large  a 
pile  of  home-made  manure  as  possible,  by  raking  and  scrap- 
ing into  his  compost  heap  every  article  fit  for  plant-food 
within  his  reach,  let  him  supplement  it  with  all  the  artific- 
ial fertilizers  of  the  best  quality  (for  he  cannot  afford  to 
pay  freight  on  sand  and  water,  and  other  adulterations) 
that  it  needs,  and  that  he  can  use  upon  his  crops  with 
profit. 

COTTON    SEED. 

The  chemical  analysis  of  cotton  seed  shows  it  to  be  the 
most  concentrated  and  nutritious  cattle-food  known;  and 
experience  has  corroborated  the  fact.  It  is  considered 
injurious  to  hogs.  Cattle  eliminate  from  it  very  little 
of  the  manurial  elements,  and  their  droppings,  after  the 
use  of  cotton  seed  as  a  food,  as  shown  by  Sir  J.  B. 
Lawes,  form  a  manure  of  the  best  character.  Their  albu- 
minoids are  not  as  ready  to  undergo  fermentation,  and 
therefore  the  ammonia  is  not  so  quickly  available,  as 
those  of  animal  substances;  it  is  therefore  necessary  that 
they  shall  have  been  fermented.  If  the  truck-farmer  be 
at  the  same  time  a  cotton  planter,  or  be  located  where  he 
can  conveniently  procure  cotton  seed  cheaply,  he  needs 
no  other  strong  supplement  to  his  manure  pile.  Should 
he  desire  to  increase  its  efficacy  for  a  special  crop,  an  ad- 
dition of  forty  or  fifty  pounds  of  a  good  potash  salt,  or 
four  hundred  or  five  hundred  pounds  of  an  acid  phos- 
phate per  ton  of  the  compost,  would  answer  the  purpose, 
if  the  cotton  seed  was  about  equal  in  weight  to  the  for- 
mer. It  is  too  rich  to  feed  alone,  and  should  be  consid- 


38  TRUC£-FARMIKG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

erably  mixed  with  poorer  food,  as  straw,  shucks,  etc.; 
but  if  the  vegetable-grower  be  a  stock-owner,  he  should 
feed  as  much  cotton  seed,  or  cotton-seed  meal,  as  pos- 
sible, and  save  the  droppings  of  the  cattle.  The  best 
method  of  preparing  cotton  seed  is  to  compost  it  with 
stable-manure,  and  prevent  a  too  rapid  fermentation. 

No  country  is  so  fortunate  as  the  South  in  possessing 
in  its  cotton  seed,  for  a  long  number  of  years  considered 
a  mere  waste  product,  the  best  cattle- food  and  one  of  the 
best  fertilizers  in  the  world.  If  correctly  appreciated, 
only  the  oil,  which  has  no  manurial  value,  would  be  ex- 
ported. While  the  stores  of  guanos  are  being  exhaust- 
ed, the  quantity  of  cotton  seed  grows  with  the  increasing 
cotton  crops. 

FISH    SCRAP — FISH  GUAKO. 

Moss-bunkers,  or  Menhaden  (Alosa  menhaden)  are 
caught  along  the  Atlantic  Coast  from  Maine  to  Virginia, 
in  immense  numbers.  The  fish  are  boiled,  and,  after 
the  extraction  of  the  oil  by  compression,  the  more  or  less 
dried  refuse,  consisting  of  the  flesh  and  bones,  is  sold 
under  the  above  names  as  an  exceedingly  rich  fertilizer. 
For  the  sandy  coast  lands,  I  have  for  years  given  it  the 
preference  over  the  best  Peruvian  guano,  or  any  other 
commercial  fertilizer.  In  a  compost,  it  readily  under- 
goes decomposition,  changing  rapidly  into  those  com- 
pounds assimilable  by  plants.  Placed  alone  in  the  soil, 
particularly  in  a  dry  season,  it  does  not  become  suffi- 
ciently decomposed,  to  make  the  phosphoric  acid  of  the 
bones  available.  This  article  is  so  useful  in  supplying 
the  manufacturers  and  manipulators  of  artificial  fertil- 
izers with  the  most  valuable  ingredients  of  many  of  their 
compounds,  and  is  by  them  so  well  appreciated,  that  not- 
withstanding the  enormous  quantities  produced  by  the 
fisheries,  it  has  been  difficult  to  procure  it  of  late  years. 


MANURES,   THEIR  KINDS  AKD  USES. 


39 


Along  the  coast  of  Florida  large  quantities  of  fish  offal 
may  be  made  available. 

NIGHT-SOIL. 

Like  other  animal  manures,  night-soil  varies  in  efficacy 
and  composition  in  proportion  to  the  richness  of  the  food 
from  whence  it  was  derived.  It  is  more  nutritive  than  the 
dung  of  animals;  but  owing  to  the  large  quantity  of  water 
with  which  it  is  diluted,  and  its  offensiveness,  it  is  diffi- 
cult of  transportation. 

In  so  far  as  nitrogen,  phosphoric  acid,  and  potash  are 
concerned,  human  excrements  compare  with  the  average 
of  excrements  of  horses,  cows,  sheep,  and  swine,  as 
shown  in  the  following  table  :* 


ONE  TON   (2,000  POUNDS). 

SOLIDS. 

tTBINE. 

1 

fc 

Ibs. 
5.0 
4.3 

Nitrogen. 

f 

Potash. 

Human  

Ibs. 
20.0 
9.4 

Ibs. 
21.8 
6.2 

Ibs. 
12.0 
22.5 

Ibs. 
3.7 
0.4 

Ibs. 
4.0 
25.4 

Mean  of  horse,  cow,  sheep,  and  swine  

One  ton  of  the  fresh,  solid  excrement,  contains  more 
than  twice  as  much  nitrogen  as  a  ton  of  fresh  mixed 
animal  dung;  the  urine  of  man  contains  nine  times  as 
much  phosphoric  acid  as  that  of  horses,  etc.,  and  proba- 
bly nearly  all  the  nitrogen  is  in  available  condition. 

Lawes  and  Gilbert  found  that  an  adult  male  voided  in 
the  course  of  a  year,  fasces,  ninety-five  pounds;  urine, 
one  thousand  and  forty-nine  pounds,  or  one  thousand 
one  hundred  and  forty-four  pounds  of  excrement  in  the 
pure  state. 


*  Harris's  Talks  on  Manures. 


40 


TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 


These  contain: 

Dry  substance faeces,  33*  Ibs.,  urine,  34*   Ibs.:  total,  58J   Ibs. 

Mineral  matter...  "  2i      «  12        "  144      « 


Mineral  matter "  '     2* 

Carbon "  10       " 

Nitrogen "  1.3    " 

Phosphoric  acid "  0.7    " 

Potash "  0.24" 


12 
12       " 
10.8    " 
1.93  " 
2.01  " 


14* 
22       " 
12       " 
2.63  " 
2.25  " 


One  hundred  pounds  of  the  dry  substance  of  the  faeces 
contain  five  pounds  of  nitrogen  and  five  and  one- 
half  pounds  of  phosphates.  One  hundred  pounds  of 
the  dry  matter  of  urine  contains  twenty-seven  pounds  of 
nitrogen,  and  ten  and  three-fourths  pounds  of  phos- 
phates. City  night-soil  should  be  promptly  incorporated 
with  stable  manure  upon  its  arrival,  and  that  of  the 
farm  should  be  mixed  with  dry,  fine  muck,  woods-earth, 
or  garden  soil,  by  which  the  ammonia  will  be  absorbed 
and  its  offensiveness  avoided.  This  muck,  or  earth, 
when  dried,  may  be  repeatedly  used  for  the  same  purpose. 
Should  the  quantity  be  deficient,  a  little  plaster  might  be 
added. 

In  the  earth  closets,  the  dry  earth,  before  using,  con- 
tained in  five  tons,  sixteen  and  seven-tenths  pounds  of 
nitrogen;  after  being  used 

Once 5  tons  of  dry  earth  contained  24.0  Ibs.  nitrogen 

rpnrjs.a  K.  "  «  Q«  9     «  ' 


Twice 5 

Three  times  5 
Four  times.. 5 
Five  times.. 5 
Six  times.... 5 


36.3 

44.6  " 

54.0  " 

61.4  " 

71.6  " 


Owing  to  its  great  solubility,  night-soil  is  especially 
adapted  to  growing  early  vegetables.  The  commercial 
fertilizer,  poudrette,  is  night-soil,  which  has  been  dried  in 
pans,  and  mixed  with  charred  earth,  peat,  charcoal,  or 
ground  peat  and  plaster.  It  is  variable  in  quality  in  pro- 
portion to  the  care  with  which  the  escape  of  ammonia 
may  have  been  prevented;  the  best,  compared  with  cow- 


*Dr.  GUbert. 


MAHURES,   THEIR  KItfDS  AtfD  USES.  41 

dung,  in  respect  to  the  quantity  of  ammonia  being  rated 
as  four  to  one. 

MUCK. 

When  successive  generations  of  plants  have  grown 
and,  with  the  leaves  from  surrounding  forest  trees,  have 
decayed  on  the  same  low,  swampy  soil,  the  vegetable  mat- 
ter increases  so  rapidly  that,  with  the  exception  of  that 
supplied  by  the  decaying  mass,  very  little  mineral  mat- 
ter is  mixed  with  it.  The  mud  from  the  bottom  of  a 
pond,  in  or  around  which  no  plants  grow,  consists  merely 
of  the  washings  from  the  higher  ground,  and  deposits 
from  the  water,  and  must  be  of  inferior  quality.  It  is 
evident  that  muck  must  be  very  variable  in  quality,  ac- 
cording to  its  origin.  The  best,  besides  imparting  valua- 
ble humus  to  the  soil,  contains  four  per  cent.,  or  even 
more,  of  nitrogen.  In  some  instances,  on  the  sea  coast, 
a  rich  deposit  may  be  subject  to  overflow  at  spring  tides, 
which,  receding,  leave  marine  animals  that  will  fur- 
ther enrich  it.  An  application  to  plants  of  such  muck 
alone,  imparts  the  dark  green  color  to  the  leaves  so  in- 
dicative of  ammonia.  It  should  be  dug  and  be  permitted 
to  dry  out  several  months  before  being  used,  or  it  may 
be  mixed  with  lime  at  the  rate  of  three  or  four  bushels 
to  the  ton  of  muck.  There  is  no  better  absorbent  for  the 
earth  closet,  the  poultry  house,  the  stable,  the  cow  pen, 
or  the  manure  pile  than  salt-marsh  muck.  It  may  be 
drilled  in  with  any  artificial  fertilizer.  Woods-earth,  or 
leaf  mould,  is  still  better  as  decayed  vegetable  matter, 
and  as  a  source  of  humus. 

SUPERPHOSPHATE   OR  ACID   PHOSPHATE   OF  LIME. 

Phosphoric  acid  is,  next  to  ammonia,  or  the  nitrates, 
the  most  important  element  of  plant  food,  and  it  is  also, 
next  to  nitrogen,  the  earliest  to  become  exhausted  in 
soil.  It  exists  in  all  plants,  in  most  soils,  combined  with 


4$  TRtJCK-FARMISTG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

vegetable  matter,  in  all  excrementitious  matter,  and  in 
the  tissues  and  bones  of  animals.  Bones  consist  ot 
phosphate  of  lime,  or  bone  earth  and  gelatine. 

Phosphoric  acid  and  lime  unite  in  three  different  pro- 
portions. In  common  bone  earth  there  are  three  equiv- 
alents of  lime  to  one  of  phosphoric  acid,  and  this  salt  of 
lime  is  called  the  tricalcic  phosphate,  or  three-lime  phos- 
phate. This  is  not  soluble  in  pure  rain  water.  Large 
bones,  as  is  well  known,  remain  for  ages  buried  in  the 
ground,  and  are  only  very  slowly  dissolved  by  the  car- 
bonic acid  in  the  water.  The  next  is  the  reverted,  or 
dicalcic,  or  two-lime  phosphate,  consisting  of  two  equiv- 
alents of  lime  to  one  of  phosphoric  acid,  which  is  also 
insoluble.  The  monocalcic,  or  one-lime  phosphate,  con- 
sists of  one  equivalent  of  lime  and  one  of  phosphoric 
acid,  and  is  the  acid-phosphate,  or  superphosphate  of 
lime  of  the  agriculturist,  and  is  soluble  in  water. 

The  manufacturer  is  enabled  to  present  this  valuable 
soluble  fertilizer  to  agriculture  by  treating  bones,  or  the 
South  Carolina  phosphates,  the  poor  phosphatic  guanos, 
the  coprolites,  or  any  other  mineral  tricalcic  phosphate 
of  lime,  with  sulphuric  acid,  or  oil  of  vitriol.  This  re- 
moves two  equivalents  of  lime  (as  plaster  or  sulphate  of 
lime),  converting  it  into  the  one-lime,  or  superphosphate. 

The  surest  source  of  phosphoric  acid  is  finely-powdered 
bone  meal.  One  ton  of  this  contains,  in  its  gela- 
tine, as  much  nitogen  as  eight  and  one-half  tons  of 
fresh  stable  manure,  and  twenty-three  per  cent,  of  it  is 
phosphoric  acid.  Bone  meal  is  slowly  soluble  in  the  soil 
by  the  action  of  carbonic  acid.  For  vegetable  growing  it 
should  be  decomposed  in  the  manure  pile,  and  supplied 
at  the  rate  of  five  hundred  pounds  to  the  acre. 

The  manufacturer  mixes  finely-powdered  fish-scrap, 
nitrate  of  soda,  or  some  other  more  or  less  nitrogenous 
substance  with  his  superphosphate,  and  produces  his 
"ammoniated  superphosphate."  This  mere  manipula- 


MANURES,   THEIR  KINDS  AND  USES.  43 

tion  the  gardener  may  undertake  more  cheaply  at  home, 
and  with  greater  satisfaction. 

Phosphatic  fertilizers  are  especially  beneficial  to  root 
and  bulb  crops. 

More  or  less  of  the  insoluble  phosphates  may  be  mixed 
with  and  sold  in  the  superphosphate.  These  have  little 
practical  value  to  the  general  agriculturist,  and  none  to 
the  gardener. 

During  the  fermentation  of  the  bone  meal  in  the-  ma- 
nure pile,  which  is  accelerated  by  the  gelatine,  soluble 
nitrogenous  organic  compounds  and  salts  of  ammonia 
are  produced.  These  act  quickly  and  powerfully  as  fer- 
tilizing agents,  and  render  the  phosphate  more  soluble. 

POTASH. 

No  vegetable  can  grow  without  potash,  for  it  is  a  con- 
stituent of  every  plant.  Its  presence  has  been  proved  to  be 
necessary  for  the  formation  of  starch  in  the  leaves;  and 
the  experiments  of  Lawes  and  Gilbert  have  pointed  out 
that  it  aids  leguminous  plants,  like  clover,  in  assimilat- 
ing nitrogen,  which  they  contain  so  largely.  It  results 
in  soils  from  the  disintegration  of  minerals,  and  is  less 
apt  to  be  absent,  particularly  in  heavy  soils,  than  either 
nitrogen  or  phosphoric  acid. 

Neither  the  land  of  the  truck-farmer  near  a  city,  nor 
any  other  land,  which  has  been,  even  only  moderately, 
enriched  with  the  dung  of  domestic  animals  and  accom- 
panying vegetable  matter,  needs  any  special  application  of 
potash.  If  a  crop,  even  of  potatoes,  fails  on  such  soils,  it 
will  be  owing  either  to  a  deficiency  of  the  more  important 
elements  of  plant  food,  or  to  other  unfavorable  contingen- 
cies, as  of  weather,  tillage,  drainage,  etc,,  rather  than  to 
a  lack  of  potash.  But  on  light  lands  frequently  manured 
.with  exclusively  nitrogenous  manures,  like  fish  scrap, 
Peruvian  guano,  etc.,  and  cropped  with  potatoes,  or  some 


44  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

other  vegetable  exhaustive  of  potash,  an  application  of  a 
salt  of  potash  either  alone,  or  of  a  fertilizer  largely  con- 
taining it,  becomes  indispensable.  All  potash  salts,  be- 
ing exceedingly  soluble,  are  liable  to  be  leached  out  of 
sandy  land.  A  crop  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  bushels  of 
Irish  potatoes  will  remove  from  the  soil,  in  the  tubers,  51., 3 
Ibs.  of  potash,  1.44  Ibs.  of  phosphoric  acid,  and  30. 6  Ibs.  of 
nitrogen.  Formerly  the  ashes  of  hard-woods  was  nearly 
the  only,  and  limited  source  of  potash;  but  recently  the 
kainit  mines  in  North  Germany,  near  Stassfurt  and  Leo- 
pold shall,  provide  this  element  in  enormous  quantities. 
The  lower  grades  contain  a  constituent,  the  chloride  of 
magnesium,  which  is  actually  injurious  to  plant  growth. 
Years  ago,  like  J.  H.  H.  Gregory  of  Marblehead,  Mass.,  I 
had  an  experience  which  showed  the  detrimental  effects 
of  this  salt  in  the  ruin  of  a  potato  crop.  Mr.  Gregory 
mixed  a  compost  of  twenty-eight  bbls.  of  hen  manure, 
twenty-eight  bbls.  of  dry,  rich  soil,  twelve  bbls.  of  fine 
ground  bone  with  three  bbls.  of  kainit.  This  was  allowed 
to  heat  twice  before  it  was  applied,  at  the  rate  of  two  quarts 
to  the  hill,  and  according  to  his  custom,  cabbage  seed 
was  sown  in  the  field,  on  each  hill.  The  seed  sprouted; 
bub  the  little  seedlings  were  killed  as  soon  as  the  first 
rootlets  reached  the  fertilizer.  As  large  quantities  of  this 
kainit  are  being  introduced  into  the  South,  statements  by 
Prof.  Atwater  (American  Agriculturist,  Vol.  XXXVI, 
No.  11)  are  here  given  as  a  warning  against  the  improper 
or  indiscriminate  use  of  the  lower  grades  of  the'se  potash 
salts:  "The  mines  at  Stassfurt,  Leopoldshall  and  Wes- 
teregeln  are  from  six  hundred  to  one  thousand  two  hun- 
dred feet  deep,  and  the  area  of  deposit  is  calculated  at 
six  hundred  square  miles.  The  salts,  as  taken  from  the 
mines,  contain  only  a  small  proportion  of  potassium  com- 
pounds, the  bulk  consisting  of  materials  which  have  com- 
paratively little  agricultural  value,  and  are  sometimes 
positively  injurious.  They  are,  therefore,  subjected  to 


MANUKES,    THEIR   KINDS   AND   USES. 


45 


chemical  treatment,  by  which  the  potash  compounds  are 
more  or  less  completely  purified.  As  prepared  for  mar- 
ket, the  potash  fertilizers  contain  potassium  in  the  form 
of  either  chloride  of  potassium,  or  sulphate  of  potash, 
and,  along  with  these,  other  compounds,  as  shown  by  the 
following  figures  from  circulars  of  the  German  manu- 
facturers: 

COMPOSITION  OF  THE  GERMAN  POTASH  SALTS. 


BBAND8  OP  POTASH   SALTS. 

POTASSIUM   AND   OTHER   COM- 
POTJKDS.—  LBS.  IN  100  LBS. 

r 

^  s 

1 

Chloride  of 
Magnesium. 

if 

1   Crude  kainit 

Ibs. 

17-26 
18-22 
24 
29-33 

70 

90-95 
54-57 

Ibs. 
80-85 

Ibs. 

10-12 
16-20 
16-18 
17-22 
1-2 
5-10 
3-6 
34-38 

Ibs. 

14-17 
2-4 
2-4 
3-5 

Ibs. 

32-40 
35-50 
3(M2 
30-35 
12-16 
5-10 
1-2 
1-2 

Ibs. 

9-14 

9-12 
13 
15-18 
50-52 
38 
50-52 
28-30 

2.  Crude  sulphate  of  potash  (dung  salt)  
3   Prepared  kainit 

4.  Crude  sulphate  of  potash  —  magnesia  
5.  Five-fold  concentrated  salt  (chloride)  
»\  Purified  sulphate  of  potash  

7.  Purified  sulphate  of  potash 

8.  Purified  sulphate  of  potash—  magnesia.... 

"All  these  brands  contain  other  than  potash  compounds. 
Of  these  the  sulphate  of  magnesia  may  be  valuable,  since 
it  is  useful  as  plant  food,  and  further,  aids  in  diffusing 
the  potash  through  the  soil  and  thus  bringing  it  within 
reach  of  the  roots  of  plants.  The  chloride  of  sodium,  or 
common  salt,  though  not  needed  for  plant  food,  is  useful 
in  rendering  other  materials  available,  and  hence  is  often 
quite  valuable  as  a  fertilizer.  For  certain  crops,  how- 
ever, like  potatoes,  sugar  beets,  and  tobacco,  it  is  apt  to  be 
detrimental;  probably  on  account  of  the  chlorine  which 
it  contains.  The  chloride  of  magnesium  may  be  in- 
jurious. Nos.  1,  2,  3,  and  4,  in  the  table,  are  low  grade 
articles,  furnishing  only  nine  to  eighteen  per  cent, 
of  actual  potash.  The  crude  kainit,  No.  1,  is  the  ma- 


46  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

terial  as  dug  from  the  mines  and  ground.  The  prepared 
kainit,  No.  3,  is  made  by  roasting  the  crude  kainit. 
The  '  dung  salt'  No.  2,  is  a  waste  product,  formed 
in  the  manufacture  of  the  high  grade  articles.  Nos.  5, 
6,  7,  and  8,  are  high  grade  articles  of  two  kinds,  viz., 
the  chlorides  or  'muriates.'  In  No.  5,  the  potas- 
sium is  combined  with  chlorine,  as  chloride  of  potas- 
sium, or  '  muriate  of  potash,'  and  in  the  sulphates, 
Nos.  6,  7,  8,  it  is  combined  with  sulphuric  acid,  as 
sulphate  of  potash.  Little  of  No.  8  is  manufactured. 

' '  It  is  becoming  customary  to  characterize  these  salts  by 
the  percentages  of  sulphate  or  chloride  of  potassium  they 
furnish.  Thus  an  '  eighty  per  cent,  sulphate '  is  one 
that  contains  eighty  Ibs.  of  sulphate  of  potash  in  one 
hundred  Ibs.  of  the  salt.  An  ( eighty  per  cent,  muriate ' 
would  contain  eighty  per  cent,  of  chloride  of  potassium. 

MOST    DESIRABLE    GRADES    FOR    OUR    USE. 

"  It  is  clear  that  for  this  side  of  the  Atlantic,  the  high 
grades  must  be  the  most  economical  as  potash  fertilizers. 
The  sulphates  are,  on  the  whole,  preferable;  but  the  po- 
tassium in  these  is  more  costly  than  in  the  chlorides. 
The  chlorides  sometimes  injure  the  burning  quality  of 
the  tobacco  leaf,  decrease  the  amount  of  sugar  in  sugar 
beets,  and  of  starch  in  potatoes,  and  make  the  latter  less 
'  mealy '  than  is  desirable.  The  sulphates,  on  the  other 
hand,  are  always  safe.  For  buckwheat,  corn,  wheat, 
oats,  and  other  grains,  for  leguminous  crops  and  grasses, 
and  for  wet  soils,  the  chlorides  are  preferable  because 
cheaper.  Generally  speaking,  the  most  desirable  grades 
will  probably  be : 

" For  sulphates:  the  highest  grades  which  contain  from 
seventy-five  to  ninety  per  cent,  or  more,  of  sulphate  of 
potash,  corresponding  to  from  forty  to  fifty  per  cent,  of 
actual  potash. 


MANURES,    THEIR   KINDS   AND   USES.  47 

"For  chlorides:  the  '  muriate'  with  eighty  to  eighty-five 
per  cent,  of  chloride  of  potassium,  corresponding  to 
fifty  to  fifty- three  per  cent,  of  potash. 

"By  the  above  table,  the  amount  of  actual  potash  in 
the  low  grade  salts,  varies  from  nine  to  eighteen  per  cent. 
Some  of  the  salts  sold  in  this  country  have  yielded  as  low 
as  seven  to  eight  per  cent.  The  disadvantage  in  purchas- 
ing these  poorer  articles  is  a  double  one.  Not  only  do 
they  furnish  very  little  potash,  the  bulk  being  made  up 
of  other  and  inferior  or  injurious  compounds;  but  the 
purchaser  has  to  pay  the  cost  of  freight  and  handling  of 
this  extra  material  between  the  mines  in  Germany  and 
his  farm. 

"  The  method  of  applying  potash  salts  is  of  great  im- 
portance. Cases  are  common, — I  have  known  several 
myself,  where  crops  were  injured  or  destroyed." 

Professor  Atwater  proceeds  to  recommend  that  the  salt 
be  uniformly  diffused  through  the  soil,  and  not  concen- 
trated in  single  spots,  that  it  be  applied  in  the  fall  for  the 
next  season's  crop,  so  that  the  rains  may  have  an  oppor- 
tunity to  distribute  it  through  the  soil;  or  that  it  be  com- 
posted with  muck,  farm  refuse,  or  earth.  Doubtless  the 
chloride  of  magnesium  could  thus  be  rendered  harmless. 

In  another  volume  of  the  "American  Agriculturist," 
Prof.  Atwater  says:  "Analyses  of  potash  salts  by  Prof. 
Johnson,  chemist  of  the  Connecticut  Board  of  Agricul- 
ture, and  by  Prof.  Goessmann,  State  Inspector  of  Fer- 
tilizers in  Massachusetts,  agree  entirely  with  Prof.  Stor- 
er's,  and  ours,  in  showing  that  a  large  amount  of  the 
German  potash  salts  imported  into  this  country  are  of 
the  poorer  grades.  This  is  a  '  serious  evil,  which  needs 
to  be  known — and  to  be  corrected.'  .  As  long  as  farmers 
will  buy  low-priced  potash  salts,  and  other  fertilizers, 
because  they  are  'cheap,'  and  pay  no  regard  to  the 
actual  quality,  they  must  expect  to  get  poor  wares  at  dear 
rates,  and  have  poor  success  in  using  them." 


48 


TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 


Ashes  are  the  product  of  combustion,  and  in  their  ef- 
fect are  somewhat  similar  to  that  of  decaying  and  mould- 
ing vegetable  matter.  When  the  use  of  potash  is  indi- 
cated, and  ashes  of  hard- wood  can  be  obtained,  they  are  a 
safer  and  much  more  satisfactory  and  effective  fertilizer 
than  the  German  potash  salts;  for  they  contain  all  the  min- 
eral elements  of  plant  food  which  the  tree  had  derived  from 
the  soil.  They  are,  of  course,  void  of  nitrogen;  but  tend  to 
render  nitrogen  and  other  soil  ingredients  available. 
They  also  amend  the  physical  condition  of  heavy  soils, 
and  are  adapted  to  those  of  sandy  character.  Measures 
should  be  devised  to  save  the  ashes  of  cities  as  manure. 
A  bushel  of  unleached  ashes  weighs  about  forty-eight 
pounds;  a  "struck"  bushel  of  leached  ashes,  fifty- 
seven  pounds,  and  one  "  heaped,"  about  seventy-one 
pounds.  A  dressing  of  fifty  bushels  of  unleached  ashes 
to  the  acre,  at  forty-eight  pounds  to  the  bushel,  would 
give  two  hundred  pounds  of  potash;  seven  hundred  and 
sixty-eight  pounds  of  lime;  one  hundred  and  twenty 
pounds  of  magnesia;  forty-eight  pounds  of  phosphoric 
acid,  and  thirty-six  pounds  of  sulphuric  acid. 


Wood  Ashes, 
100  Ibs.  contain 
on  the  average 

Potash,  Ms. 

Lime,  Ibs. 

Magnesia, 
Ibs. 

Phosphoric 
Acid,  Ibs. 

Sulphuric 
Ac:d.  Ibs. 

Unleached 

7  to  10 

32 

5 

2 

IVa 

Leached  

1  to    2 

25 

^1/2 

IV. 

Vi 

QUICK-LIME. 

Ammonia  is  not  produced  in  organic  matter  until  pu- 
trefaction commences,  when  nitrogen  and  hydrogen  com- 
bine in  the  proportions  of  one  to  three  to  form  it. 

If  quick-lime  is  added  before  the  process  begins,  the 
lime  unites  with  the  nitric  acid,  and  forms  nitrate  of 
lime,  fixing  or  retaining  the  nitrogen;  but  when  the  lime 
is  added  to  stable  manure  in  fermentation,  or  to  Peruvian 
guano,  or  to  ground  fish- scrap,  or  to  any  other  substance 
containing  ammonia,  the  ammonia  escapes  into  the  air, 


MANUKES,    THEIE  KINDS  AND  USES.  49 

and  is  lost.  We  may  see  this  take  place,  if  we  heat  de- 
caying vegetable  matter  with  lime,  or  witness  it  if  we 
mix  guano  and  quick-lime  together  in  the  palm  of  the 
hand,  and  smell  the  escaping  ammoniacal  gas.  A  good 
soil  may,  without  any  recent  manuring,  contain  three 
thousand  or  more  pounds  of  nitrogen  per  acre  in  the  first 
six  inches  of  depth,  or  as  much  as  is  contained  in  three 
hundred  and  thirty-three  tons  of  fresh  horse  manure,  and 
yet  require  a  fresh  application  of  soluble  nitrogenous 
manure  to  bring  a  satisfactory  crop  to  maturity.  The  rea- 
son is,  that  the  above  large  amount  of  nitrogen  is  locked 
up  in  the  soil,  existing  in  unassimilable  combinations,  in 
short,  is  unavailable.  Professor  Johnson  found  only 
sixty-three  pounds  of  available  nitrogen  in  four  thousand 
six  hundred  and  fifty-two  pounds  of  a  soil  per  acre,  at 
the  depth  of  twelve  inches. 

Every  arable  soil  contains  a  sufficiency  of  lime  for  the 
direct  needs,  as  plant  food,  of  any  crop;  and  while  the 
cereals,  or  grain  plants,  contain  less  of  lime,  both  in 
grain  and  straw,  than  any  other  crop,  they  especially  re- 
quire nitrogenous  manure,  and  to  these  the  general  agri- 
culturist applies  it  freely.  Now,  a  simple  dressing  of 
lime  has  been  known  to  double  the  yield  of  grain  on  a 
soil  containing  unavailable  nitrogen. 

It  would  require  too  much  space  to  mention  the  chem- 
ical changes  lime  undergoes  from  its  condition  as  carbon- 
ate of  lime  in  rock  or  shells,  until,  as  caustic  lime,  it 
exerts  its  strange  power,  or  to  attempt  an  explanation  of  its 
extraordinary  effects,  not  yet  fully  understood,  upon  the 
various  constituents  of  the  soil. 

Suffice  it  to  say:  First. — It  renders  stores  of  wealth  in 
the  soil  available  to  crops.  Second. — It  neutralizes  acids 
in  the  soil  which  might  be  injurious  to  vegetation. 
Third. — It  rapidly  decomposes  vegetable  matter  in  the 
soil,  and  renders  its  elements  fit  for  plant  food.  Fourth. — 
It  amends  the  physical  texture  both  of  heavy  clays  and 


50  TRUCK-FABMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

sandy  land.  Fifth. — It  aids  and  promotes  the  produc- 
tion of  nitric  acid,  and  forms  the  soluble  nitrate  of  lime. 
Sixth. — It  hastens  the  maturity  of  crops.  Seventh. — It 
is  supposed  to  form  combinations  in  the  soil  which  at- 
tract nitrogen  from  the  atmosphere — probably  silicate 
of  lime. 

Notwithstanding  all  these  advantages  the  truck-farmer 
will  rarely  have  recourse  to  lime.  Near  the  city  his  large 
supply  of  manure  will  render  its  use  unnecessary.  Only 
in  case  of  an  emergency,  an  unexpected  lack  of  manure, 
and  on  heavy  land,  would  he  be  warranted  in  bringing 
out  the  latent  power  of  his  soil  by  a  heavy  application. 
Small  quantities  might  be  desirable  occasionally.  Its  use 
must  impoverish  the  soil  to  the  extent  of  its  decomposi- 
tion, and,  if  persisted  in,  the  complete  removal  of  organic 
matter  and  of  ammonia;  and  the  gardener  who  farms 
with  less  stable-dung,  or  near  the  coast,  rarely  gets  a 
sufficiency  of  vegetable  matter  incorporated  with  his 
sandy  soil. 

"  Lime  and  lime  without  manure 
Will  make  both  land  and  farmer  poor." 

Neither  lime  nor  ashes  should  ever  be  mixed  with  dung, 
Peruvian  guano,  poultry  manure,  or  any  other  organic 
fertilizer  upon  the  soil,  unless  there  be  present  sufficient 
muck  or  earth  to  arrest  and  absorb  the  escaping  am- 
monia. 

Lime  is  applied  at  the  rate  of  from  twenty-five  to  two 
hundred  bushels  per  acre.  One  hundred  bushels  would 
add  about  one  half  of  one  per  cent,  to  a  soil  six  inches 
deep. 

COMMON   SALT. 

Chlorine  and  soda  are  more  or  less  the  constituents  of 
every  plant.  Salt  (chloride  of  sodium)  is  a  combination 
of  chlorine  and  the  metal  sodium.  Soda  is  a  compound  of 
oxygen  and  sodium.  Common  salt  is  the  source  of  the 


MANURES,    THEIR   KINDS   AND   USES.  51 

soda  compounds.  Every  soil,  and  every  animal  and 
vegetable  manure,  contain  this  salt,  and  generally  in 
sufficient  quantity  for  the  direct  needs  of  most  plants. 
Storms  may  blow  the  salt-spray  of  the  ocean  fifty  miles 
inland.  The  coast  lands,  the  Gulf  and  Atlantic  shores, 
of  Florida,  must  be  abundantly  supplied  with  it  to  meet 
the  direct  wants  of  a  crop. 

Plants  which  naturally  live  upon  the  sea  shore,  like 
asparagus,  generally  abound  in  salt,  while  in  others  it  may 
exist  as  a  mere  trace.  In  beets  it  forms  nearly  one-third 
of  the  ash;  in  potatoes  seven,  and  in  carrots  six  per 
cent.  In  all  roots  it  is  generally  a  prominent  constituent. 
Plants  will  therefore  respond  differently  to  its  applicar 
tion.  While  an  asparagus  bed  will  bear  a  heavy  dressing, 
the  same  quantity  would  destroy  most  other  cultivated 
plants  as  effectually  as  it  does  the  weeds  among  the 
asparagus  plants.  It  needs  therefore  to  be  used  carefully, 
five  or  six  bushels  to  the  acre  being  enough,  to  be  applied 
cither  broadcast,  if  fine,  or  in  compost,  if  coarse.  It  in- 
creases the  brightness  and  strength  of  the  straw,  and  the 
yield  of  grain  in  the  cereals.  Its  effects  on  fertile  soil, 
already  supplied  with  a  sufficiency  for  the  use  of  the  crop, 
demonstrates  tho  fact  that  it  exerts  an  influence  upon 
other  fertilizing  agents,  decomposing  them  and  rendering 
them  available.  The  moisture  it  attracts  from  the  at- 
mosphere through  its  hygroscopic  power  must  also  be  fc 
great  benefit  to  sandy  soil. 

GYPSUM — LAND    PLASTER. 

This,  which  is  the  sulphate  of  lime,  can  supply- 
plants  with  sulphuric  acid  and  lime;  both  of  which, 
however,  are  generally  found  in  soils  in  sufficient  quan- 
tity for  the  needs  of  most  crops.  Where  clover  may  be 
grown  as  a  green  manure  or  for  feed,  it  is  a  useful  fertil- 
izer; but  otherwise  the  market-gardener  will  rarely  use 
it;  unless  he  incorporates  it  in  his  manure  pile  to  fix  the 


TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 


ammonia  as  sulphate.  Where  the  potato-rot  prevailed, 
gypsum  has  been  known  to  show  worse  results  than  any 
other  application;  probably  owing  to  the  moisture  it  at- 
tracted from  the  atmosphere. 

NITRATE   OF   SODA   AND  THE   AMMONIA   SALTS. 

These  are  the  most  concentrated  nitrogenous  fertiliz- 
ers, and  in  their  pure  state  are  to  be  sparingly  and  care- 
fully applied,  so  as  not  to  come  in  direct  contact  either 
with  seed  or  the  roots  of  plants.  To  increase  the 
strength  of  stable  manure,  particularly  such  as  is  defi- 
cient in  liquid  excrement,  or  of  compost,  there  is  nothing 
better  than  these  salts,  to  be  added  to  the  former  just 
before  its  application.  They  may  also  be  carefully  sown 
broadcast  at  the  rate  of  one-fourth  to  one-half  a  ton,  in- 
timately mixed  with  fine  muck,  woods-earth,  or  soil,  to 
insure  an  even  distribution.  The  best  to  use  will  be  such 
as  supply  the  gardener  with  nitrogen  at  the  cheapest 
rate.  The  following  table  presents  the  present  market 
prices,  their  proportion  of  ammonia,  and  their  calculated 
value,  according  to  the  now  existing  high  valuation  of 
ammonia  in  fertilizers — twenty-five  cents  per  pound: 


Nitro- 
gen. 

Equiva- 
lent to 
Am- 
monia. 

Calcula- 
ted Value. 

Nitrate  of  soda  

16.40 

19.20 

$96  00 

Nitrate  of  potash   

13.75 

16.6 

83  00 

Carbonate  of  ammonia                       . 

17.70 

21  50 

107  50 

Muriate  of  ammonia 

25  50 

31  00 

155  00 

Sulphate  of  ammonia 

21.20 

25  75 

128  60 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind,  however,  that  these  salts 
are  not  chemically  pure,  but  contain  about  ten  per  cent, 
of  impurities,  which  may  or  may  not  have  any  agricul- 
tural value. 

In  nitrates  of  soda  and  potash,  the  nitrogen  exists  in 
the  available  form  of  nitric  acid,  but  is  more  apt  to  be' 
lost  by  leaching  than  the?  ammonia  in  the  other  salts, 


MANURES,   THEIR  KINDS  AND   USES.  53 

The  carbonate  has  too  high  a  value  as  a  drug  to  allow  it 
to  be  used  by  the  gardener,  except  perhaps  on  a  very 
small  scale,  and  experimentally  in  the  green-house. 
For  such  crops  as  are  grown  for  their  leaves,  as  cabbage 
and  spinach,  these  salts  are  admirably  adapted;  but  in 
the  case  of  potatoes,  large  doses,  as  the  physician  would 
say,  are  contra-indicated. 

LIQUID   MANURE. 

In  China  and  Holland,  liquid  manuring  for  the  most 
valuable  crops  is  extensively  practised.  As  the  urine  of 
all  animals  is  much  richer  than  the  solid  excrements 
(that  of  the  horse  containing  thirty-one  pounds  of  ni- 
trogen to  the  ton,  whereas  the  solid  excreta  only  contain 
nine  pounds),  it  has  a  relatively  higher  agricultural 
value,  and  should  be  saved  with  care  proportioned  to  its 
efficacy.  The  nitrogen  being  in  a  more  available  form, 
if  applied  to  crops  in  the  liquid  state,  it  will  be  more 
valuable  in  consequence  of  its  solubility.  When  plants 
have  reached  the  stage  of  rapid  and  steady  growth,  ap- 
proaching maturity,  their  vital  energy  and  the  absorptive 
power  of  their  roots  will  enable  them  to  profit  wonder- 
fully from  an  application  of  liquid  manure,  for  which 
reason  the  cauliflower  and  the  cabbage  are  treated  to 
food  in  this  form  just  before  the  former  is  expected  to 
"  curd,"  and  the  latter  to  head. 

When  seedling  plants  have  to  be  watered  at  the  time 
of  transplanting,  a  weak  liquid  manure  would  help  them 
to  start  better  than  pure  water. 

Urine  is  too  " strong"  to  be  allowed  to  come  in  direct 
contact  with  seed  or  with  roots,  and  should  first  be  al- 
lowed to  ferment,  and  then  be  diluted  with  five  or  six 
parts  of  water.  In  its  fresh  state  it  contains  no  am- 
monia, this  being  formed  from  urea  after  putrefaction 
has  commenced. 

Solid  manure  may  be  steeped  in  water  until  the  latter 


64  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

has  assumed  a  dark  clear  color,  when  the  liquor  may  be 
used,  or  Peruvian  guano,  at  the  rate  of  a  quarter  pound, 
or  any  of  the  ammonia  salts,  at  the  rate  of  two  ounces 
dissolved  in  a  gallon  of  water,  may  be  substituted. 
Liquid  manure  should  be  applied  just  before  a  rain;  at 
any  rate,  the  soil  should  be  moist,  as  there  is  then  no 
danger  of  the  liquid  passing  through  the  soil  and  be- 
yond the  reach  of  the  roots.  One  gallon  of  water  is 
capable  of  absorbing  one  thousand  one  hundred  and  fifty 
gallons  of  gaseous  ammonia.  Owing  to  its  inconvenience, 
truck-farmers  rarely  use  liquid  manure. 


CHAPTER    IV. 
THE  ROTATION  OF  CROPS. 

It  is  as  advantageous  for  the  market-gardener  as  for 
the  general  agriculturist  to  grow  his  different  crops  in 
succession.  Various  theories  have  been  proposed  to  ex- 
plain the  phenomena  attending  the  growth  of  certain 
crops  on  the  same  soil  for  a  number  of  successive  years. 

Chemical  analysis  shows  that,  while  all  plants  are  com- 
posed of  nearly  the  same  elements,  they  exist  in  each 
kind  in  varying  proportions.  It  is  supposed  that  a  plant 
requiring  for  its  full  development  more  of  one  inorganic 
element  than  another,  exhausted  the  soil  of  the  former  to  a 
greater  or  less  degree,  and  rendered  that  gradually  unfit  for 
its  own  continued  growth,  while  a  different  plant,  somewhat 
differently  constituted,  would  still  find  in  the  soil  all  the 
elements  it  required  for  its  maturity  in  sufficient  quantity, 
and  in  an  available  condition. 

When  it  was  ascertained  that,  if  all  the  elements  known 
to  be  taken  f  f  om  the  soil  by  a  certain  crop,  were  returned 
to  it  in  fertilizers,  and  even  more  of  these  than  it  had 
lost,  the  crop  still  continued  to  depreciate,  the  theory  of 
exhaustion  of  the  soil  then  failed  to  be  a  satisfactory  solu- 


THE  ROTATION  OF  CROPS.  55 

tion.  De  Candolle  and  others  then  supposed  that  the 
necessity  for  a  rotation  of  crops  was  attributable  to  the 
fact  that  plants,  during  growth,  throw  off  excrenientitious 
matters  by  their  roots,  which,  they  agreed,  were  injuri- 
ous to  a  following  crop  of  their  own  kind,  but  not  to 
others.  Exceptional  cases,  as  that  of  the  onion,  would 
have  to  be  accounted  for  upon  the  hypothesis  that  that 
plant  either  did  not  excrete  from  the  root,  or  if  it  did, 
the  matter  eliminated  was  not  detrimental  to  itself. 
Others  supposed  that  the  decaying  fibrous  roots  might  be 
injurious.  Whether  or  not  either  of  these  theories  alone 
correctly  explains  the  phenomena  of  rotation,  the  practice 
of  rotation  remains  the  best  possible  method  of  keeping 
the  soil  clean,  mellow,  and  in  the  best  attainable  condi- 
tion for  the  production  of  remunerative  crops  with  the 
least  cost  of  manure. 

It  is  doubtless  true  here,  as  in  many  other  matters  per- 
taining to  agriculture,  that  circumstances  may,  to  a  cer- 
tain extent,  modify  a  general  rule.  In  the  treatment  of 
land  of  different  kinds  and  textures  the  farmer  should 
be  an  empiric  as  little  as  the  physician.  The  fact  that 
rotation  may,  for  a  limited  number  of  years,  be  unneces- 
sary on  deep  alluvial  soils,  or  on  heavy  clays,  with,  or 
without  manure,  may  not  suffice  to  upset  a  general  prac- 
tice as  old  as  agriculture  itself. 

Joseph  Harris  in  his  "  Talks  on  Manures,"  while  dis- 
cussing the  results  of  the  interesting  experiments  of 
Lawes  and  Gilbert  on  the  heavy  clay  soil  of  "Botham- 
sted,"  and  probably  basing  his  observations  too  upon  ex- 
perience with  his  own  clays,  says:  "  The  old  notion  that 
there  is  any  real  chemical  necessity  for  a  rotation  of  crops 
is  unfounded.  Wheat  can  be  grown  after  wheat,  and 
barley  after  barley,  and  corn  after  corn,  provided  we  use 
the  necessary  manures,  and  get  the  soil  clean  and  in  the 
right  mechanical  condition."  In  other  parts  of  his  val- 
uable book  he  says:  "A  light  sandy  soil  will  not  pre- 


56 


TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 


serve  manure  like  a  clay  soil." — (p.  177.)  "On  light 
sandy  soil,  such  an  annual  dressing  of  manure  (fourteen 
tons  barn-yard  manure  per  acre)  would,  in  the  course  of 
a  few  years,  make  the  land  too  rich  for  wheat." — (p.  176.) 
"On  sandy  land,  the  manure  will  decompose  more 
rapidly,  and  act  quicker  than  on  clayey  or  loamy  land." 
— (p.  295.)  "To  what,  then,  is  the  power  of  soils  to 
arrest  ammonia,  potash,  magnesia,  phosphoric  acid,  etc., 
owing?  The  above  experiments  lead  to  the  conclusion 
that  it  is  due  to  the  clay  which  they  contain.  Pure 
sand  was  found  not  to  possess  it." — (p.  218.)  "A 
London  clay  contained  about  seven  thousand  pounds  of 
ammonia  per  acre,  equivalent  to  the  quantity  contained 
in  seven  hundred  tons  of  barn-yard  manure." — (p.  221.) 
"  Clay  mixed  with  manure  arrests,  or  checks  decomposi- 
tion. Sand  has  no  such  effect.  If  anything,  it  favors  a 
more  active  decomposition,  and  hence,  manure  acts  much 
more  rapidly  on  sandy  land  than  on  clay  land." — (p.  268.) 
A  table  by  Lawes  and  Gilbert  shows  the  produce  of 
wheat  per  acre  on  the  clay  soil  of  Eothamsted  for  twenty 
consecutive  years  without  any  manure: 


SEASON. 

Tear. 

Bushel*. 

PecTa. 

First      

1843 

15 

Second.        

1844 

23 

Oft 

Third             

1845 

17 

3* 

Fourth       .            

1846 

16 

3i 

Fifth                                           

1847 

14 

Sixth 

1848 

19 

1 

Seventh                                   .     .  . 

1849 

15 

8} 

Eighth 

1850 

15 

3i 

Ninth  

1851 

13 

3i 

Tenth  

1852 

5 

3i 

Eleventh     

1853 

21 

i 

Twelfth  

1854 

17 

Thirteenth  

1855 

14 

2 

Fourteenth  

1856 

19 

it 

Fifteenth  

1857 

18 

Sixteenth              

1858 

18 

u 

Seventeenth      

1859 

12 

3* 

Eighteenth             

1860 

11 

1* 

Nineteenth    

1861 

16 

Twentieth  

1862 

17 

1 

THE  ROTATION  OP  CHOPS.  5? 

The  weight  of  the  grain  of  the  first  crop  was  fifty- 
eight  and  five-tenths  pounds  per  bushel,  and  that  of  the 
twentieth,  or  last,  was  sixty-two  and  seven-tenths  pounds 
per  bushel,  so  that  after  continuous  cropping,  without 
manure,  the  land  produced  in  the  twentieth  year  two 
and  one-fourth  bushels  more  per  acre,  and  the  wheat 
weighed  four  and  one-fifth  pounds  more  per  bushel  than 
the  first  season. 

Can  there  be  a  doubt  that  on  any  other  than  a  heavy 
clay  soil  the  results  of  these  experiments  would  have 
been  different  ?  Is  there  a  soil  on  the  southern  sea  coast, 
void  of  clay,  which,  after  continuous  cropping  for  twenty 
years  without  manure,  would  produce  more  oats  or  rye 
(wheat  requires  clay)  or  any  other  crop,  to  the  acre,  than 
it  would  the  first  season  ?  If  so,  to  what  is  the  exhaus- 
tion of  our  cotton  plantations  to  be  attributed?  Better 
farming,  or  cotton  seed,  cow  peas  and  rotation  might 
have  preserved  their  fertility. 

Neither  the  areas,  nor  the  varieties  of  crops  of  the  truck- 
farmer  are  sufficient  to  enable  him  always  to  practice 
regular  courses  of  rotation;  nor  should  a  lack  of  manure 
ever  compel  their  strict  observance,  but  he  should  aim : 

First. — To  have  a  crop  which  succeeds  another  as  dis- 
similar in  composition  and  the  demands  it  makes  upon 
the  soil  as  possible. 

Second. — Never  to  have  plants  of  the  same  family  suc- 
ceed each  other.  For  instance,  melons  should  not  follow 
cucumbers;  tomatoes  should  not  follow  egg-plants,  or 
Irish  potatoes;  beans  should  not  succeed  peas,  or  vice 
versa. 

Third. — Tuberous  plants  should  not  be  allowed  to  fol- 
low plants  of  the  same  character. 

Fourth. — Eoots  should  not  succeed  to  root  crops,  as 
turnips,  beets,  etc. 

Fifth. — Deep  or  tap-rooted  plants  should  succeed 
others  of  dissimilar  growth. 


58  TKUCK-FAKMIHQ  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

Sixth. — To  make  the  heaviest  applications  of  manure  to 
such  crops  as  require  most,  as  cabbage,  onions,  etc;  and 
have  other  crops  succeed  those  requiring  less,  as  tomatoes, 
egg-plants,  etc.,  so  that  the  whole  farm  may  be  gradually 
brought  to  the  same  degree  of  fertility. 

As  the  crops  of  the  truck-farmer  come  in  for  ship- 
ment during  spring  and  early  summer,  there  is  rarely 
an  opportunity  of  having  a  second  crop  occupy  the  same 
ground,  before  the  first  is  harvested;  still  it  may  occur. 
Thus  a  crop  of  melons  or  cucumbers  may  be  put  in  be- 
tween the  wide  rows  of  peas.  The  latter  will  be  off  be- 
fore the  former  requires  the  first  working. 

A  further  benefit  of  successive  rotation  and  continued 
cropping  is  the  destruction  of  noxious  weeds,  and  of  such 
insects  as  prey  for  more  than  one  season  on  the  roots  of 
a  particular  kind  of  crop,  by  depriving  them  of  their 
food. 

A  continued  liberal  use  of  the  same  fertilizer,  although 
it  be  the  complete  stable-manure,  will  eventually  show 
less  favorable  results,  than  when  manures  are  alternated. 
Owing  to  a  too  limited  use,  this  will  not  frequently 
happen  on  our  truck-farms;  but  it  may  occasionally  occur 
near  cities,  where,  after  a  series  of  heavy  manurings  with 
stable-manure  or  night-soil,  the  land  seems  to  crave 
something  else.  A  resort  in  such  a  case  to  a  good  com- 
mercial fertilizer  will  remedy  the  evil  and  increase  the 
crop. 


WEEDS.  59 

CHAPTER   V. 
WEEDS. 

Plants,  according  to  their  manner  of  growth,  are  either 
exogenous  (outside  growers),  their  bulk  being  augmented 
by  layers  next  to  the  inner  bark;  or  endogenous  (inside, 
growers),  which  increase  from  the  centre,  the  new  growth 
pressing  the  older  outwards. 

All  the  trees  of  the  United  States,  with  the  exception 
of  the  Palmetto,  are  outside  growers.  The  Asparagus  is 
an  example  of  an  inside  grower. 

The  stem  of  an  outside  grower  consists  of  the  outer 
bark,  the  inner  bark,  or  liber,  the  sapwood  or  alburnum, 
the  heartwood  and  the  pith.  The  medullary  rays  connect 
the  pith  horizontally  with  the  inner  bark  through  the 
wood. 

When  a  seed  germinates,  it  sends  its  radicle  down  into 
the  ground  and  its  sprout  (plumule)  up  into  the  air.  The 
root  obtains  from  the  soil  crude  sap,  containing  solu- 
tions of  gases,  earths,  and  salts,  which  ascend  through 
the  sapwood  to  the  leaves.  Leaves  may  be  considered  a 
continuation  of  young  bark,  and  in  plants,  which  are 
naturally  leafless,  the  young  bark  performs  their  office. 
Leaves  are  provided  on  their  upper  and  lower  surfaces 
with  breathing  pores,  or  stomata;  and  those  plants  grow- 
ing in  moist  and  shady  places,  are  most  abundantly 
supplied  with  them,  and  the  pores  are  of  larger  size. 
The  outer  skin,  or  epidermis,  of  thick-leaved  plants 
growing  in  hot,  arid  situations,  like  the  aloe,  the  prickly 
pear,  and  the  purslane,  have  few  and  small  breathing 
pores,  and  the  skin  is  still  further  protected  by  a  waxy 
covering.  When  the  sap  reaches  the  wide  expanse  of  sur- 
face of  the  leaves,  it  comes  in  contact  with  air,  heat,  and 
light,  the  crude  sap  is  digested  and  the  excess  of  water 


60  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

is  evaporated  through  the  breathing  pores,  mainly  of  the 
upperside  of  the  foliage.  Leaves  absorb  gases,  and  un- 
der some  circumstances  moisture,  from  the  atmosphere 
through  the  stomata  of  their  lower  surface.  It  is  not 
necessary  to  discuss  the  chemical  changes  brought  about 
in  the  leaves,  my  object  being  merely  to  demonstrate 
their  great  importance,  and  to  show  that  whatever  tends 
to  injure  their  health  and  vigor,  tends  to  destroy  the 
plant. 

The  digested  sap,  made  available  through  the  action  of 
the  leaves  for  the  support  of  the  plant,  descends  and  dis- 
tributes its  nourishment  wherever  it  may  be  needed  in 
the  interior  of  the  plant.  A  plant,  constantly  deprived 
of  its  leaves,  could  no  more  continue  to  live,  than  an  ani- 
mal devoid  of  skin  with  which  to  perspire,  lungs  with 
which  to  breathe,  and  stomach  with  which  to  digest, 
and  there  is  no  exception  to  this  rule,  which  applies 
alike  to  endogens  as  exogens.  Therefore  any  weed  may 
be  destroyed,  if  frequently  hoed  down,  and  some  may 
be  killed  if  cut  down  only  once. 

The  crops  of  the  truck-farmer,  however,  should  be 
kept  so  well  stirred  that  most  of  the  weeds  with  which  he 
has  to  contend  are  killed  before  they  appear  above  the 
ground.  Two  of  our  worst  weeds,  the  Wormseed  (Cheno- 
podium  ambrosioides,  var.  anthelminticum),  and  Dogfen- 
nel  (Eupatorium  fwniculaceum)  must  be  eradicated  when 
young,  or  they  will  become  troublesome  by  sprouting 
from  the  deep  roots.  Even  our  worst  pest, 

NUT-GRASS — COCO-GRASS   ( Cyperus   rotundus, 
var.  Hydra), 

can  be  destroyed,  if  constantly  hoed,  or  plowed  and 
raked  out,  but  owing  to  the  depth  of  its  growth  and  to 
the  abundance  of  nuts,  each  of  which  has  several  eyes, 
to  clear  any  considerable  area  by  hoeing,  would  cost  more 
than  the  land  would  be  worth.  If  a  piece  of  land  over- 


WEEDS.  61 

run  with  nut-grass  is  to  be  cleared  and  will  grow  cow 
peas,  these  should  be  sown  at  the  rate  of  two  and  a  half 
bushels  to  the  acre,  as  soon  in  the  spring  as  possible,  and 
be  plowed  under  before  the  shedding  of  the  leaves  ad- 
mits any  light  and  air  to  the  soil.  These  should  be  fol- 
lowed by  a  second  crop  of  peas,  and  the  latter  by  one  of 
rye.  If  this  round  is  repeated,  there  will  be  little,  if  any, 
nut-grass  to  be  seen  at  the  commencement  of  the  third 
season,  but  a  third  year  may  be  required  to  kill  it.  If  a 
mulch  is  laid  upon  the  ground  six  or  eight  inches,  or 
more,  in  thickness,  nut-grass  will  push  its  way  through; 
but  the  stems  upon  which  the  young  nuts  are  formed  will 
not  penetrate  the  earth  deeply;  and,  if  the  mulch  has 
partly  rotted  in  contact  with  the  soil,  they  will  remain 
upon  the  surface,  or  so  near  it,  as  to  be  destroyed  to  a 
great  extent,  by  firing  the  covering  material  during  dry 
weather.  A  second  or  even  a  third  mulch  may  be  neces- 
sary to  be  completely  effective.  Nut-grass  is  propagated 
by  the  nuts;  and  if  the  growth  above  ground  is  constantly 
interrupted,  and  it  is  not  allowed  to  bloom,  it  is  doubt- 
ful whether  the  nuts  can  come  to  maturity. 

BERMUDA  GRASS  (Cynodon  Dactylori) 

may  be  destroyed  in  the  same  manner  as  nut-grass;  but 
an  easier  and  cheaper  method  may  be  adopted  with  this 
plant,  as  it  may  be  killed  out  by  repeatedly  plowing  and 
raking  during  hot  and  dry  weather,  particularly  in  heavy 
ground  with  clay  subsoil.  Neither  this  nor  the  nut-grass 
matures  seed  in  the  United  States. 

PURSLANE  (Portulaca oleracea.) 

This  weed  spreads  an  extraordinary  number  of  fine  seeds 
over  a  place,  if  allowed  to  mature,  and  it  should  be  de- 
stroyed when  young.  Owing  to  the  nature  of  the  leaf  and 
the  paucity  of  stomata,  this  plant  may  be  upon  the  sur- 


62  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

face  for  days  in  the  hot  sun  without  dying.  The  same 
is  true,  but  to  a  greater  degree,  of 

THE  PRICKLY  PEAR  (Opuntia  vulgaris,) 

which  is  occasionally  an  annoyance  on  high  grounds  near 
the  coast,  and  on  the  Sea  Islands.  It  must  be  dug  up 
and  removed  from  the  land.  It  will  require  a  hot  wood 
fire  to  kill  it. 


CHAPTER   VI. 


SEED  AND  SEED  SOWING. 

Every  seed  is  provided  with  an  embryo,  the  vitality  of 
which  remains  dormant  so  long  as  the  carbon  which  the 
seed  contains  is  not  eliminated,  by  forming  carbonic  acid 
with  oxygen  during  the  process  of  germination.  The 
composition  of  a  seed  is  less  liable  to  vary  than  that  of 
any  other  part  of  a  plant. 

One  of  the  most  wonderful  works  of  nature  is  the  pro- 
Vision  made  for  the  perpetuation  of  the  species,  whether 
of  animals  or  vegetables.  Every  seed  germ,  or  embryo, 
is  really  a  plant  in  miniature,  having  its  stem  and  leaves 
in  a  more  or  less  undeveloped  state. 

If  kept  dry  and  excluded  from  air  and  its  oxygen,  the 
duration  of  its  vitality  differs  with  various  seeds.  If  the 
seed  of  any  given  plant,  which  ordinarily  retains  its 
vitality  for  an  extended  period,  is,  when  fully  matured, 
thoroughly  dried,  and  perfectly  protected  from  contact 
with  air  and  moisture,  there  is  no  reason  why  it  may  not 
retain  its  vitality  for  many  yeurs.  Prof.  Lindley  says: 
u  Not  to  speak  of  the  doubtful  instances  of  seeds  taken 


SEED   AHD   SEED  SOWING. 


63 


from  the  pyramids  having  germinated,  melon  seeds  have 
been  known  to  grow  at  the  age  of  forty  years,  kidney 
beans  at  one  hundred,  sensitive-plant  at  sixty,  rye  at  forty, 
and  there  are  now  (1859)  growing,  in  the  garden  of  the 
Horticultural  Society,  raspberry  plants  raised  from  seeds 
sixteen  hundred  or  seventeen  hundred  years  old." 

There  is  considerable  difference  of  opinion  between  ex- 
perimenters in  regard  to  the  duration  of  vitality  in  agri- 
cultural seeds  under  ordinary  climatic  influences;  but  it 
probably  depends  upon  the  comparative  condition  of  the 
seed  and  the  influence  of  the  different  climates  of  their 
respective  countries.  The  table  below  shows  the  earlier 
experiments  of  Cobbett  in  England,  and  the  later  ones  of 
Vilmorin  in  France. 


Cobbett. 
Years. 

PB- 

morin. 
Years. 

Cobbett. 
Years. 

W> 

^rl: 

Artichokes  

3 

5 

Kale 

4 

5 

AsDarasrus 

4 

4 

Leek 

2 

2 

Bean           

2 

6 

Lettuce 

3 

5 

Bean  (Kidney)  .  . 

1 

3 

Melon 

10 

5 

Beet 

10 

5 

Onion 

2 

2 

Broccoli  

4 

5 

Okra  .  . 

2 

Cabbage 

4 

5 

Pea 

2 

4 

Carrot 

1 

4 

Pumpkin 

10 

5 

Cauliflower  

4 

5 

Radish  

4 

5 

Celery  

10 

Salsify  

2 

2 

Corn 

3 

2 

1  Spinach 

4 

5 

10 

5 

Squash  .  . 

10 

5 

Egg-plant  

3 

Tomato  .  .    .  . 

2 

5 

4 

9 

Turnip 

.    4 

5 

Southern  vegetable-growers  must  bear  in  mind  that 
our  warmer  climate,  particularly  on  the  moist  sea  coast, 
will  affect  the  longevity  of  seed.  Onion  seed,  for  instance, 
cannot  be  relied  upon  after  the  first  year;  those  of  the 
varieties  of  cabbage  and  of  turnip  after  the  second,  and 
those  of  cucurbitaceae,  as  melon,  squash,  cucumber,  etc., 
after  the  fourth  year.  Some  seeds  lose  their  germinating 
power,  if  allowed  to  become  dry,  as  will  those  of  the  wil- 
low two  weeks  after  ripening.  Experience  teaches  us  that 
fresh  seeds  of  cucumbers,  melons,  etc.,  produce  plants 


64  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

that  are  likely  to  run  to  vine,  while  older  seed  yield 
more  abundant  crops  of  fruit.  Some  English  horticul- 
turists carry  the  cucumber  seed  they  intend  to  plant  in 
hot-beds,  in  the  pockets  of  their  pantaloons  for  months 
prior  to  planting,  in  the  belief  that  the  warmth  of  their 
bodies  increases  the  productiveness  of  the  vines.  How- 
ever this  may  be,  it  is  a  safe  rule  that  seed  should  be 
fresh.  Old  seeds,  endowed  with  weaker  vitality,  are 
slower  to  germinate;  they  come  up  irregularly,  and  too 
large  a  percentage  is  absolutely  sterile.  Seed  of  ten-weeks 
stock,  four  years  old,  is  used  by  gardeners  to  produce 
plants  to  bear  double  flowers,  while  fresh  seed  produces 
the  more  perfect  single  flowers.  Such  being  the  case,  only 
fresh  tomato  seed  should  be  used;  as  the  double  flowers 
produce  irregularly- shaped,  knobby  fruit,  while  it  is 
only  the  single  flowers  that  form  the  desirable  round 
and  smooth  fruit. 

The  chemical  elements  in  an  imperfectly  matured 
seed  seem  unstably  combined.  If  such  germinate  at  all, 
it  will  be  sooner  than  seeds  fully  ripe;  but  the  plants  will 
be  of  weaker  growth,  owing,  probably,  to  an  insufficient 
storage  of  nourishment.  Such  unripe  seeds  will  also  be 
the  earliest  to  become  sterile.  Some  vegetable  physi- 
ologists believe  that  immature  seeds  will  produce  earlier 
varieties  than  the  mature.  There  are  many  facts  in 
regard  to  the  distribution  and  germination  of  seeds, 
which  appear  unaccountable  and  wonderful.  After  the 
destruction  of  forests  by  fire,  certain  plants  will  spring 
up  in  large  numbers,  although  no  parent  plants  of  the 
same  species  may  have  been  growing  in  the  vicinity. 
The  unavoidable  conclusion  is,  that  the  seed  had  re- 
mained in  the  soil  for  years,  awaiting  favorable  condi- 
tions for  its  development.  Plants,  unlike  any  in  the 
vicinity,  have  grown  in  the  soil  excavated  from  deep 
wells;  thus  the  upper  crust  of  the  earth  seems  full  of 
seeds,  Every  Southern  farmer,  who  has  cleared  land, 


SEED   AND   SEED   SOWING.  65 

knows  that  a  growth  of  oak  or  other  deciduous  trees  will 
follow  pine,  and  vice  versa.  It  seems  as  if  nature  would 
thus  demonstrate  the  principle  of  rotation  of  crops. 
Theory  seems  to  be  unable  to  explain  how  seeds  can  re- 
main dormant  in  the  soil  for  years,  under  conditions 
apparently  favorable  to  germination. 

THE   QUALITY   OF   SEEDS. — TESTING. 

Its  plumpness,  its  specific  gravity  or  density,  rather 
than  its  size,  is  an  indication  of  the  quality  of  a  seed; 
and  it  will  generally  sink  in  water.  No  one  matter  is  of 
more  importance  to  the  horticulturist,  than  the  quality 
of  the  seed  he  sows,  not  only  in  reference  to  the  certainty 
of  vegetating,  but  also  to  its  being  true  to  variety.  Our 
well-known  seed  merchants,  as  a  general  rule,  doubtless 
seek  to  send  out  sound  and  reliable  seed;  but  they  are 
compelled  in  some  instances  to  depend  for  a  supply  of 
special  kinds  upon  seed-growers  personally  unknown  to 
them,  and  may  themselves  be  deceived.  In  an  expe- 
rience of  twenty-six  years  I  have  found,  however,  a  con- 
siderable difference  *in  the  comparative  trustworthiness 
of  some  of  the  leading  and  most  extensive  seed  dealers. 
A  few  of  the  smaller  firms,  and  of  less  extended  repu- 
tation, frequently  gain  the  custom  of  Southern  druggists, 
and  often  of  retail  dealers,  by  granting  the  privilege  of 
returning  the  stock  which  remains  unsold  in  their  hands 
after  the  spring  sales.  In  some  instances  such  seeds  may 
be  good  and  true;  but  having  suffered  losses  from  their 
use,  I  warn  Southern  growers  against  their  purchase. 

The  surest  way  to  avoid  disaster  is  to  make  a  prelimi- 
nary test  of  any  suspicious  seed.  It  is  not  necessary  to 
commit  the  seed  to  the  ground.  Dr.  Nobbe,  of  the 
Tharand,  Saxony,  Seed  Control  Station,  has  devised  a 
simple  apparatus  of  earthenware  for  the  purpose.  To 
test  seeds,  I  place  a  sample,  folded  in  a  piece  of  moist 
cloth,  or  blotting  paper,  at  the  bottom  of  a  small  com- 


66  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

mon  flower-pot,  which  is  plunged  in  the  soil  of  another, 
one  or  two  sizes  larger,  and  a  third  pot,  filled  with  earth, 
of  the  size  of  the  first  is  placed  within  the  second.  If 
the  soil  of  the  two  pots  is  kept  damp,  the  seed,  if  good, 
will  germinate,  and  can,  from  time  to  time,  be  conveni- 
ently examined.  By  thus  testing  his  seed,  the  gardener 
may  ascertain  the  percentage,  sure,  under  proper  man- 
agement, to  come  up,  and  may  regulate  his  sowing  ac- 
cordingly. 

If  seeds  are  to  be  preserved  and  retain  their  proper 
vitality,  it  is  indispensable  that  they  should  be  com- 
pletely ripe,  and  be  kept  perfectly  dry.  They  should 
be  inclosed  in  cloth  bags,  and  suspended  in  a  dry  room. 
Imported  seed  should  not,  as  is  frequently  done,  be  sent 
to  our  warm  climate  packed  in  hermetically-closed  me- 
tallic cases.  Neither  the  seed,  nor  the  thick  paper  gen- 
erally used  in  packing  being  sufficiently  dry,  the  con- 
fined moisture  will  cause  a  commencement  of  germina- 
tion, and  the  heat  generated  by  the  process,  and  the 
moisture,  is  very  apt  in  such  cases  to  destroy  the  vitality 
of  all. 

Seeds  of  home  growth  that  are  subject  to  injury  from 
weevils  may  be  preserved  in  jugs,  demijohns,  etc.,  in 
which  a  piece  of  gum  camphor,  a  little  cyanide  of  po- 
tassium (a  most  deadly  poison),  or  an  open  phial  of  tur- 
pentine has  been  inserted. 

THE   GERMINATION-   OF   SEEDS. 

As  the  absence  of  moisture,  warmth  and  air  is 
necessary  to  the  preservation  of  the  vitality  of  seed,  so 
the  presence  of  these  agents  is  essential  to  excite  their 
vital  forces,  and  cause  germination.  In  this  process  the 
outer  covering  of  the  seed  softens,  and  allows  the  em- 
bryo to  swell;  water  is  decomposed,  and  the  carbon  forms 
carbonic  acid  with  its  oxygen.  In  the  case  of  sterile 
seed  the  softening  and  swelling  occur  without  any  de- 


SEED  AND  SEED   SOWING.  67 

composition  of  water.  In  the  presence  of  a  superabund- 
ance of  moisture,  fresh  seeds  may  absorb  more  water  than 
they  are  able  to  decompose,  and  the  death  and  subse- 
quent rotting  of  the  germs  take  place;  for  this  reason 
it  is  more  advisable  to  sow  in  dry  than  in  wet  weather. 

The  degree  of  heat  necessary  to  start  vital  action  varies 
in  different  species,  and  depends  upon  their  character 
and  composition,  and  the  climate  to  which  the  plants 
were  indigenous. 

The  most  favorable  temperature  of  the  soil  for  the 
germination  of  seeds  of  plants  from  cold  climates,  may 
be  stated  at  from  fifty  degrees  to  fifty-five  degrees; 
for  those  of  green-house  plants,  at  from  sixty  to  sixty- 
five  degrees,  and  for  those  of  the  torrid  zone,  at  from 
seventy  to  eighty  degrees. 

Of  all  the  seeds  sown  by  the  truck-farmer,  those  of 
the  onion  will  germinate  at  the  lowest  temperature;  other 
conditions  being  favorable,  they  will  sprout  at  a  few  de- 
grees above  freezing,  while  those  of  the  melon  and  egg- 
plant require  a  higher  temperature.  Healthy  seeds  of 
some  species  may  be  exposed  to  a  remarkably  high  de- 
gree of  temperature  without  impairing  their  vitality. 
Seeds  of  raspberry  have  been  known  to  grow  which  had 
been  picked  from  a  jar  of  jam  which  must  have  been 
heated  to  the  degree  of  boiling  syrup,  or  two  hundred  and 
thirty  degrees. 

To  promote  germination,  seeds  are  sometimes  soaked 
in  water  heated  to  within  a  few  degrees  of  the  boiling 
point,  or  about  two  hundred  degrees,  but  this  is  only  prac- 
ticable with  hard  and  healthy  seed.  The  practice  of 
soaking  seeds  in  water  to  soften  the  outside  covering,  or  in 
an  alkaline  solution  having  a  strong  affinity  for  carbonic 
acid,  or  a  substance  able  to  supply  a  large  quantity  of 
oxygen,  like  a  dilute  solution  of  oxalic  acid,  is  only  ad- 
visable when  the  difference  of  a  few  days  in  the  time  of 
germination  is  important,  as  for  instance,  in  the  case  of 


68  TKUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

the  loss  of  a  previous  planting  by  frost;  otherwise  it  is 
better  for  the  gardener  to  commit  his  seed  to  the  ground 
under  as  favorable  conditions  as  possible,  and  trust  to  the 
usual  natural  process. 

HOME-GBOWtf   SEEDS. 

While  it  is  a  matter  of  true  economy  for  the  farmer  to 
purchase  as  little  as  he  may,  and  sell  as  much  as  he  can,  a 
non-observance  of  which  rule  has  often  been  the  fault  of 
the  Southern  planter;  we  are  compelled  by  the  effects  of 
our  climate  to  purchase  the  majority  of  our  vegetable 
seeds  of  either  foreign  or  Northern  growers.  Half  the 
success  of  growing  profitable  crops  depends  upon  the 
seeds,  and  we  can  better  afford  to  pay  treble  the  price  for 
those  which,  from  experience,  we  know  to  be  good  and 
true,  than  to  grow  them  ourselves,  and  find  too  late  that 
they  are  worse  than  useless.  Again,  many  vexations  from 
buying  poor  seed  may  be  avoided  by  growing  such  as  are 
indigenous  to  warm  climates,  and  may  be  produced  cheaply 
and  of  superior  quality.  There  is  no  reason,  for  instance, 
why  the  Southern  truck-farmer  should  not  save  his  own 
seed  of  melons,  squashes,  cucumbers,  onions,  pepper,  to- 
matoes, and  egg-plants,  provided  he  can  keep  each  of  the 
first  named  three  far  enough  apart  from  any  other  species 
of  the  squash  family  to  prevent  mixing,  while  it  is 
not  advisable  for  him  to  use  his  own  seed  of  cabbage,  cauli- 
flower, etc.;  of  beets,  carrot?,  turnips,  etc.;  for  the 
former  will  run  prematurely  to  seed  without  forming 
heads,  and  the  roots  of  the  latter  will  be  of  inferior 
quality,  becoming  small  and  woody.  It  is  so  difficult  to 
preserve  large  quantities  of  garden  peas  and  snap  beans 
against  injury  from  weevils,  from  the  time  they  mature, 
through  the  summer,  to  the  following  spring,  that,  al- 
though I  have  seen  peas  of  home  growth  satisfactorily 
tested  along  side  of  those  grown  in  Canada,  both  in  ref- 


SEED  AtfD  SEED  SOW1KG.  69 

erence  to  earliness  and  productiveness,  I  would  not  ad- 
vise the  saving  of  these. 

Plants  like  the  sugar  cane,  the  sweet  and  Irish  potato, 
which  have  been  propagated  exclusively  for  years  from 
cuttings  or  tubers,  cease  bearing  matured  seed.  The 
potato  does  occasionally  produce  seed;  but  more  fre- 
quently at  the  North  than  at  the  South.  Should  seed  of 
Southern  production  be  desired  for  the  creation  of  new 
varieties,  it  might  be  possible  to  induce  some  of  the  late, 
not  very  productive,  varieties  to  perfect  seed  by  prevent- 
ing the  plants  from  bearing  tubers,  by  their  removal 
while  small.  This  will  encourage  the  flow  of  nutritive 
matter  to  other  parts,  just  as  contrarywise,  the  removal 
of  flowers  will  increase  the  size  of  tubers. 

CAUSES  OP  FAILURE. 

If,  after  a  seed  is  consigned  to  the  soil,  the  changes 
which  it  undergoes  during  germination  proceed  without 
interruption,  the  young  plant  will  in  due  time  make  its 
appearance  in  a  healthy  state;  but  when  severe  changes 
in  the  state  of  the  weather  occur,  it  may  perish.  If  all 
seeds  sprouted  as  promptly  and  with  as  much  vigor  as 
those  of  the  radish,  there  would  be  little  uncertainty  at- 
tending seed  sowing;  but  many  varieties,  large  and 
small,  remain  in  the  ground  from  a  few  days  to  several 
weeks,  during  which  interval  unpropitious  changes  of  the 
weather  may  occur;  a  fall  of  temperature  sufficient  to  de- 
stroy the  barely  sprouted  seed  below  the  surface  may 
supervene;  or  the  weather  may  become  so  wet  as  to  rot  the 
seed  before  germination  has  taken  place;  or  the  sun  may 
heat  the  soil  sufficiently  to  scorch  the  young  sprouts 
at  or  above  the  surface;  or,  finally,  the  ground  may  be- 
come so  baked  by  the  sun  after  a  rain,  as  to  prevent 
smaller  seed  from  breaking  through  the  hard  crust.  In 
case  of  sowing  small  seeds,  like  carrot,  celery,  etc. ,  which 
are  slow  to  germinate  in  ground  likely  to  bake,  they  may 


70  TRUCR-FARMIKG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

be  covered  with  mould  or  sand  free  from  such  tendency. 
Large  seeds,  possessed  of  more  vigor,  may  be  able,  when 
germination  has  once  commenced,  to  upheave  a  consid- 
erable weight  of  soil,  and  break  through  the  crust.  This 
baking  of  the  soil  is  a  most  prolific  cause  of  failure  and 
disappointment. 

None  of  the  seeds  of  the  truck-farmer  need  be  sown 
broadcast,  as  drill  sowing,  either  by  hand  or  with  a  ma- 
chine, is  to  be  preferred.  The  seeds  may  be  sown  more 
regularly;  the  young  plants  may  be  thinned  and  weeded 
more  conveniently,  and  the  soil  may  be  stirred  between 
the  rows.  The  drill  distributes  the  seed  more  evenly,  at 
a  uniform  depth,  and  the  operation  may  be  performed 
during  the  prevalence  of  high  wind.  There  are  a  num- 
ber of  seed-drills  now  offered  which  do  good  work.  Some 
of  these  are  so  arranged  that  they  may  be  converted  into 
hand-cultivators,  and  be  used  for  weeding  the  crop  after 
the  plants  are  up. 

No  safe  rule  can  be  established,  as  to  the  depth  at 
which  different  seeds  should  be  sown,  as  the  weather  and 
varieties  of  soil  must  be  considered.  If  continued  damp 
weather  could  be  assured,  the  rule  to  cover  the  seed  to  a 
depth  equal  to  its  own  thickness,  might  be  a  safe  one. 
In  such  case  seeds  would  germinate,  if  merely  laid  upon 
the  surface,  although  darkness  is  more  favorable  for  the 
formation  of  carbonic  acid,  and  therefore  for  germina- 
tion. In  this  matter,  the  sower  must  in  each  instance 
be  governed  by  the  character  of  his  seed,  and  by  the  con- 
ditions of  weather  and  nature  of  soil  which  obtain  at  the 
time.  While  on  heavy  land,  and  during  damp  weather, 
a  grain  of  corn  would  grow,  if  barely  covered;  in  a  dry 
climate  and  a  very  sandy  soil,  it  might  be  necessary  to 
place  it  one  foot  below  the  surface,  as  is  sometimes  the 
case  in  Colorado.  Seed  should  never  be  sown,  particu- 
larly on  sandy  soils,  when  the  ground,  from  previous 
drouth,  is  very  dry  below,  with  the  surface  only  moist 


HOT-BEDS,    COLD  FRAMES,    AND  WEATHEB.  71 

from  recent  rain;  for  if  rain  does  not  follow,  the  seeds 
may  perish  after  germination  has  merely  commenced;  or 
the  lower  soil  may  be  too  dry  a  little  later  to  supply  the 
young  root  with  sufficient  moisture.  Should  soaked 
seed  be  sown  under  such  conditions,  in  the  hope  of  assist- 
ing germination,  the  dry  soil  may  absorb  the  moisture 
from  the  swollen  seed,  and  probably  the  vitality  of  all  be 
destroyed.  At  whatever  depth  the  seeds  are  sown,  the 
soil  should  have  been  carefully  broken  up  or  "fined"  be- 
fore sowing,  using  the  harrow,  roller,  and  rake,  as  cir- 
cumstances may  require.  After  the  seeds  are  sown,  the 
surface  should  be  rolled,  in  order  to  bring  the  soil  in 
close  contact  with  the  seed.  Where  the  seed-bed  is 
small,  the  same  end  is  accomplished,  if  the  soil  is 
"firmed"  by  patting  it  with  the  back  of  the  spade. 
Mr.  Henderson  strongly  advocates  the  use  of  the  feet  to 
bring  the  soil  in  contact  with  the  seeds,  or  "  treading 
in,"  as  it  is  called.  A  person  passes  over  the  line  of  the 
drill,  and  tramps  or  presses  the  soil  down  with  his  feet. 
This  is  a  method  practised  by  some,  but  I  have  never 
seen  that  it  had  any  advantage  over  the  even  pressure  of 
the  roller. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

HOT-BEDS,  COLD  FRAMES,  AND  WEATHER. 

Seneca  and  Pliny  inform  us,  that  the  Romans  attempted 
the  forcing  of  vegetables  by  means  of  artificial  heat, 
using  thin  plates  of  talc  or  mica  in  lieu  of  glass.  As  a 
rule,  the  first  vegetables  and  fruit  of  a  season  bring  the 
best  prices,  and  the  grower  is  prompted  to  use  all  availa- 
ble means  to  push  forward  his  crops  to  early  maturity. 
Florida,  being  more  exempt  from  frosts  than  other  States, 


72  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

can  place  upon  the  market  any  vegetable  that,  in  less 
favored  sections,  requires  glass,  earlier,  more  plentifully, 
and  with  less  cost  than  the  gardeners  of  more  Northern 
States.  Since  Florida  gardeners  have  taken  up  truck- 
growing  for  the  Northern  markets,  those  in  the  vicinity 
of  Charleston  and  Savannah  require  less  glass  than  for- 
merly. Hot-beds  are  rarely  required  as  far  south  as 
Charleston  and  Savannah  to  forward  and  protect  tender 
seedlings,  like  tomatoes,  egg-plants,  peppers,  etc.  Cold 
frames,  under  proper  management,  not  only  suffice  for 
this,  but  are  preferable.  When  any  animal  or  vegeta- 
ble matters  undergo  rapid  fermentation  with  partial  ad- 
mission of  air  and  moisture,  a  considerable  amount  of 
heat  is  evolved,  and  the  gardener  takes  advantage  of 
this  chemical  process  in  his  forcing  operations.  In 
the  management  of  crops  under  glass,  and  the  removal 
of  young  and  tender  plants  to  the  open  ground,  his 
knpwledge  and  observance  of  the  changes  of  the  weather 
will  serve  him  better  than  in  any  of  his  other  operations. 
In  the  vegetable  kingdom,  the  heat  of  the  sun  is  the  cause 
of  growth,  and  its  light  that  of  maturity.  Animals  may 
live  with  little  or  no  light,  but  no  vegetable  can  come  to 
perfection  without  it.  The  sun's  rays  are  both  those  of 
heat  and  light.  Were  it  not  for  the  wise  prevention  of 
the  accumulation  upon  the  earth  of  the  heat  received 
from  the  sun,  all  life  upon  our  globe  would  be  destroyed. 

DEW   AND   FROST. 

Evaporation  and  radiation  of  heat  into  space  from  the 
earth  during  the  night,  when  it  receives  little  in  return, 
accomplish  this  purpose;  and  these  means  are  the  source 
of  benefit.  When  the  surface  of  the  earth  has,  by  this 
radiation  of  heat,  become  colder  than  the  surrounding  air, 
the  moisture  of  the  air  is  condensed  upon  it  in  the  form 
of  dew,  as  when  moisture  appears  on  the  outside  of  a 
glass  of  ice- water,  or  upon  a  gun-barrel,  etc.,  upon,  being 


HOT-BEDS,   COLD  FRAMES,   AND  WEATHER.  73 

brought  from  the  cold  outside  air  into  a  warm  room.  The 
value  of  dew  to  vegetation  is  manifested  in  such  dry  rain- 
less seasons,  as  those  of  1880  and  1881.  This  moisture 
gathers  where  it  is  most  needed,  on  low  plants,  the  roots 
of  which  do  not  penetrate  the  earth  deeply,  and  on  foliage 
near  the  ground.  The  precipitation  of  moisture  upon 
tender  vegetation,  must  diminish  the  cold  wliich  occa- 
sioned it,  and  thus  prevents  the  injury  that  might  arise 
from  that  cause.  The  partial  prevention  of  cold  on 
an  object  near  the  ground,  by  the  interposition  of  a 
screen  between  it  and  the  sky,  is  due  to  the  reflection  of 
heat  by  the  lower  surface  of  the  screen  back  to  the  object. 
This  compensates  in  part  for  the  loss  by  radiation. 

The  gardener  avails  himself  of  this,  in  protecting  his 
plants  in  cold  and  clear  nights  by  the  interposition  of 
screens,  which  are  most  effective  when  not  in  contact 
with  the  vegetation  to  be  protected.  Clouds  similarly 
prevent  injury  from  cold  at  night,  by  radiating  heat  to 
the  earth  in  return  for  what  they  intercept  from  the 
earth.  The  lower  the  clouds  the  more  effective  they  are. 
Fog,  or  clouds  of  smoke,  have  the  same  effect  as  clouds 
of  vapor.  Coast  lands  and  islands,  from  their  situation, 
are  more  subject  to  a  cloudy  sky,  to  movement  in  the 
air,  and  are  therefore  less  exposed  to  cold  by  radiation; 
but  the  chief  reason  why  islands  are  more  temperate  than 
continents  and  inland  situations,  is,  that  the  water  of  the 
ocean,  a  little  below  the  surface,  is  uniformly  in  all  lati- 
tudes about  45°.  Florida  as  a  long  peninsula,  with  an 
ocean  east  and  west,  and  Bermuda,  as  evidenced  by  her 
extremely  early  crops,  although  lying  in  the  same  lati- 
tude as  Savannah,  enjoy  these  advantages  in  an  eminent 
degree,  besides  having  the  warm  waters  of  the  Gulf 
Stream  flowing  near  their  coasts.  The  cooling  of  a 
body  exposed  on  a  clear  night,  depends  in  part  upon 
the  readiness  with  which  it  receives  heat  by  conduction 
from  bodies  warmer  than  itself  in  contact  with  it. 


74  TKtJCK-FAKMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

Bodies  thus  exposed  must  radiate  as  much  heat  during 
a  wind  as  in  a  calm,  but  in  the  former  case  the  con- 
stant contact  of  warm  air  will  return  to  them  nearly  as 
much  heat  by  conduction,  as  they  lose  by  radiation,  and 
only  a  slight  agitation  of  the  air  is  sufficient  to  thus  pre- 
vent dew  and  frost.  The  reason  why  depressed  locations 
suffer  most  from  cold  by  radiation  is,  that  they  are  more 
becalmed;  and  there  must  also  be  less  dew  in  them,  because 
of  the  calm  atmosphere  which  provides  the  moisture.  It 
is  true  that  at  considerable  altitudes  the  air  becomes  colder 
as  the  hight  increases,  but  on  hills,  in  cold  and  clear 
nights,  the  frosts  are  less  severe  in  consequence  of  the 
movement  in  the  atmosphere.  The  dew,  which  has  been 
deposited  upon  vegetation  by  condensation  from  the  at- 
mosphere, will  become  hoar  or  white  frost,  when  the 
object  upon  which  it  has  settled  is  cooled  by  sufficient 
radiation  to  congeal  the  water  into  crystals  of  ice.  This 
can  only  occur  in  this  latitude  up  to  44°  F.  of  the  sur- 
rounding atmosphere;  or  in  other  words,  frost  is  impossi- 
ble, unless  the  thermometer  falls  as  low  as  44°. 

The  different  effects  of  the  several  solar  rays  are  yet 
imperfectly  understood;  but  there  is  no  doubt  that  the 
heating  and  illuminating  rays  produce  different  results. 
Plants  supplied  with  heat  and  moisture  may  grow  for  a 
short  time  in  darkness;  but  there  will  be  no  development 
of  chlorophyll,  or  leaf-green,  and  they  cannot  thrive. 
Plants,  in  all  stages  of  growth,  need  the  presence  of  at- 
mospheric air,  from  the  seed  requiring  oxygen  for  its 
germination,  to  the  plant  which  acquires  its  chief  supply 
of  carbon  from  the  air.  Water  is  absolutely  necessary  in 
the  economy  of  vegetation. 

The  management  of  plants  under  glass,  whether  they 
are  to  be  transferred  to  the  open  ground  or  not,  requires 
an  acquaintance  with  the  effects  of  these  various  agents 
and  phenomena,  so  that  they  may  be  made  to  harmonize 
in  the  production  of  a  sturdy  and  healthy  vegetation. 


HOT-BEDS,    COLD  FRAMES,    AND  WEATHER.  75 

If  a  relative  excess  of  either  is  permitted,  failure  is  cer- 
tain. A  spindling  growth  will  result  from  too  much 
light  or  heat;  too  luxuriant  growth  from  an  excess  of 
moisture  and  heat;  and  the  plants  are  apt  to  damp  off 
from  much  moisture  and  deficient  light. 

Having  succeeded  in  producing  satisfactory  plants,  it 
is  the  policy  of  the  gardener  to  transfer  them  to  the 
field  as  early  in  the  spring  as  possible. 

IMPORTANCE   OF   WEATHER   OBSERVATIONS. 

The  study  of  atmospheric  changes  has  in  all  ages  been 
pursued  by  men  engaged  in  agriculture  and  the  pasturage 
of  animals.  To  put  out  his  plants  judiciously,  the  gar- 
dener must  carefully  observe  the  general  season.  The 
belief  in  any  direct  effect  of  the  moon  upon  vegetation, 
is  a  mere  superstition  of  the  past.  At  full  moon  the 
reflected  light  amounts  to  VB19000  of  the  sun's  bright- 
ness, not  equal  in  intensity  to  that  reflected  by  a  white 
cloud  in  a  summer's  day;  and  the  heat  at  the  same 
phase  reaches  only  94/1000000  of  a  degree.  It  is  now  gen- 
erally denied  that  the  moon  has  any  effect  upon  the 
weather;  yet  observations  extending  through  many  years 
seem  to  warrant  the  belief  that  changes  of  the  weather 
do  more  frequently  occur  at  the  moon's  phases  than 
at  any  other  time.*  At  any  rate  during  fair  weather 
radiation  is  most  active  in  consequence  of  the  clear  sky 
attending  full  moon;  and  the  gardener  will  do  well  to  bear 
in  mind  the  great  likelihood  of  an  appearance  of  frost  at 
that  change  of  the  moon,  about  the  time  in  spring  he  de- 
sires to  transfer  his  plants  to  the  open  ground,  and  to 
delay  the  operation  until  it  has  passed. 

After  a  warm  rain,  if  the  wind  comes  out  strongly  from 
the  north-west,  a  reduction  of  temperature  will  follow 
and  a  frost  during  the  night  becomes  probable,  if  the  wind 

*See  London's  Encyclopaedia,  p.  445.    Toaldo's  48  Years'  Observationi. 


?6  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

lulls  before  morning.  No  reliance  can  be  placed  upon 
warm  weather  at  the  time  of  rain;  for  the  rapid  fall  of 
the  thermometer  under  the  above  circumstances,  is  some- 
times astonishing.  Thus  after  a  rain  at  one  o'clock  P. 
M.  of  April  3rd,  1879,  the  thermometer  stood  here  (Wil- 
mington Island)  at  75°  F.,  and  under  the  prevalence  of 
a  north-west  wind  during  the  evening  and  early  night,  it 
fell  36°,  giving  us  a  killing  frost  on  the  morning  of  the 
4th,  at  39°  at  sunrise.  Frost  occurred  also  on  the 
fifth  and  sixth,  at  39°. 

Among  the  many  creatures  that,  like  the  swallow,  have 
been  thought  to  announce  the  advent  of  spring,  I  consider 
the  appearance  of  the  Tumble-bug  (Ateuchus  pilularius) 
and  the  Whip-poor-will,  or  Chuck-will's-widow,  the  most 
trustworthy.  I  have  rarely  known  a  frost  to  occur  after 
hearing  the  voice  of  this  bird  in  proclamation  of  the 
spring. 

Below  is  a  table  of  last  frosts  of  the  spring  for  a  num- 
ber of  successive  years  on  this  and  the  adjacent  Island  of 
Whitemarsh,  taken  from  the  diary  of  the  late  R.  T. 
Gibson,  who  kept  a  meteorological  record  for  the  Smith- 
sonian Institute. 

1835.— March  29th,  cold  wind  from  the  N.  W.;  March 
30th,  frost;  April  7th,  said  to  have  been  frost,  but  saw 
none. 

1836. — March  21st,  rain;  22d,  cold;  23d,  frost. 

1837. — March  4th,  snow,  five  inches  deep;  April  7th, 
rain;  9th,  wind  N.  W.;  10th,  frost. 

1838.— March  18th,  cloudy;  19th,  clear  and  cold. 

1839.— March  5th,  wind  N".;  6th,  sleet;  30th,  rain, 
wind  N. ;  March  31st,  sleet  and  rain. 

1840.— March  12th,  rain;  13th,  wind  K  W.,  frost; 
March  25th,  rain,  wind  W. ;  26th  and  27th,  frost. 

1841.— March  16th,  rain  and  hail;  17th,  wind  N.  W.; 
18th,  frost;  20th,  frost;  April  14th,  light  frost, 

1842.— February  21st,  cloudy;  22d,  wind  N.  W.;  23d, 


HOT-BEDS,    COLD   FRAMES,    AND   WEATHER.  77 

white  frost;  24th,  frost;  March  23d,  Melia  Azedarach 
(Pride  of  India)  in  bloom;  April  7th,  Blackberries  ripe; 
April  17th,  hail  the  sizs  of  half -grown  wild  plums. 

1843.— March  27th,  rain;  28th,  wind  N.  W;  29th,  ice 
and  frost. 

1844.— March  7th,  rain;  8th,  wind  K  W.;  ther- 
mometer at  sunrise  44°;  9th,  42°;  March  20th,  rain; 
22d,  wind  W.,  frost. 

1845.— March  24th,  rain;  25th,  therm.  42°;  26th, 
frost;  April  10th,  therm,  at  sunrise  43°,  frost. 

1846. — March  14th,  rain,  wind  N.  W.  afterwards;  15th, 
16th,  and  17th,  frost,  therm.  38°. 

1847.— March  26th,  rain;  27th,  wind  N.  W.,  therm. 
35°;  28th,  therm.  35°,  frost. 

1848.— March  13th,  rain;  14th,  therm.  37°,  wind  N". 
W.;  15th,  wind  N.  W.,  therm.  32°;  16th,  therm.  31°, 
ice;  April  9th,  rain;  10th,  cold  but  no  frost. 

1849. — March  20th,  rain;  21st,  wind  K  W.,  no  frost. 

1850.— March  23d,  rain;  24th,  wind  N.  W.,  therm. 
39°,  cold  but  no  frost;  27th,  rain;  28th,  therm.  39°, 
wind  N.  W.;  28th,  rain;  29th,  frost. 

1851.— March  16th,  rain;  17th,  therm.  46°,  wind  W.; 
19th,  therm.  44°,  wind  N.  W.;  20th,  therm.  34°,  heavy 
frost;  28th,  first  Chuck-will's-widow. 

1852. — March  17th,  rain  last  night;  19th,  rain  at  day- 
light; 20th,  therm.  32°,  wind  K  W.,  heavy  frost;  25th, 
first  Chuck-will's-widow. 

1853. — March  4th,  rain  at  7  A.  M.;  5th,  rain;  6th, 
therm.  35°,  frost;  7th,  therm.  34°;  21st,  first  Chuck- 
wilPs-  widow. 

1854.— March  23d,  rain  last  night,  wind  N.  W.;  24th, 
therm.  54°,  wind  N.  W.;  25th,  wind  N.  W;  26th,  therm. 
40°;  27th,  frost;  April  1st,  rain;  2d,  therm.  45°,  wind 
N.  W.;  3d,  therm.  37°;  4th,  frost,  therm.  40°;  6th,  first 
Chuck-will's-widow. 

1855.— March  27th,  rain;   28th,  wind  N.  W.,  therm. 


78  TRUCK-FABMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

S8°,  too  much  wind  for  frost;  29th,  therm.  30°,  ice; 
April  14th,  first  Chuck-will's-widow. 

1856.— March  26th,  cloudy,  wind  W.;  27th,  wind  N. 
W.;  28th,  ice;  April  7th,  first  Chuck- will's-widow. 

1857.— April  6th,  rain,  wind  S.  W.;  7th,  wind  N.  W., 
therm.  40°,  frost;  March  29th,  first  Chuck-will's-widow. 

1858.— March  5th,  therm.  37°,  frost;  April  8th,  first 
Chuck-will's-widow. 

1859.— March  18th,  rain;  19th,  therm.  44°,  wind  N. 
W.;  20th,  frost,  but  light — several  times  in  April  only 
prevented  by  wind;  April  4tb,  first  Chuck-wilPs-widow. 

I860.— March  27th,  cloudy;  28th,  wind  W.;  29th, 
heavy  frost;  April  5th,  first  Chuck-will's-widow. 

1861.— March  18th,  rain;  19th,  wind  N.  W.,  snow; 
20th,  therm.  39°,  frost;  April  10th,  first  Chuck-will's- 
widow. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  above,  that  cold  weather  was 
invariably  either  preceded  by  rain,  or  cloudy  weather, 
the  probability  being  that  there  was  rain  somewhere  in 
the  district. 

TO   MAKE   A   HOT-BED. 

The  material  most  frequently  used  for  the  formation 
of  hot-beds,  when  a  considerable  degree  of  heat  is  re- 
quired, is  stable  manure,  that  of  well-fed  horses  being 
the  most  effective.  When  a  lower  temperature  suffices, 
a  steady  heat  may  be  obtained  by  mixing  vegetable  mat- 
ter, like  leaves,  spent  tan  bark,  etc.,  with  the  stable  ma- 
nure. I  have  used  with  advantage  a  layer  of  our  long 
moss  (Tillandsia  usneoides),  about  one  foot  thick,  below 
one  of  stable  manure,  for  forcing  sweet  potato  draws,  or 
sets.  This  moss,  when  taken  up  at  the  end  of  the  season 
and  cleaned,  was  in  a  merchantable  condition  as  black 
moss.  The  manure,  without  too  much  litter,  should  be 
thrown  from  the  stables  into  a  conical  heap,  and  kept 
moist  for  four  or  five  days,  when  it  should  be  turned 


HOT-BEDS,    COLD   FBAMES,    AND   WEATHER.  79 

over.  After  the  lapse  of  four  or  more  days,  according 
to  the  season,  it  will  have  acquired  a  steady  heat,  and  be 
ready  for  use.  The  site  for  a  hot- bed,  or  cold  frame, 
should  be  on  sandy,  or  gravelly,  or  well-drained  soil,  con- 
venient to  water,  well  protected  from  north  and  north- 
west winds;  it  must  be  free  from  overhanging  trees  and 
the  shade  of  houses,  but  open  to  the  sun  from  its  rising  to 
its  setting.  Unless  the  aspect  of  the  bed  be  a  point  or 
two  eastward  of  south,  the  plants  growing  at  the  e  ist- 
ern  end  will  be  dwindled  by  the  shade  of  the  frame. 

The  site  having  been  chosen,  the  manure  is  placed 
either  on  the  surface,  or  in  an  excavation,  about  six  inches 
deep,  in  the  shape  of  a  solid  parallelogram,  extending  in 
length  and  breadth,  one  foot  beyond  the  dimensions  of 
the  frame  to  be  placed  upon  it.  Each  layer  of  manure 
is  evenly  and  moderately  beaten  down  with  the  back  of 
the  fork,  until  about  three  feet  thickness  is  attained,  care 
being  taken  to  have  the  pile  uniformly  moist  throughout. 
The  frame  with  glass  is  then  put  on,  and  air  is  given  only 
during  the  day,  unless  the  weather  is  warm,  when  it  may 
be  admitted  du  ring  the  night.  After  two  or  three  days,  fer- 
mentation will  recommence,  when  the  bed  will  be  ready  to 
receive  its  coating  of  six  inches  or  more  of  garden  soil  for 
seed,  for  the  forcing  to  maturity  of  cucumbers,  etc.  The 
frame  should  be  as  wide  as  the  length  of  the  sash,  and  its 
length  will  be  determined  by  the  number  of  sash.  No  bed 
should  be  constructed,  if  avoidable,  for  less  than  four 
"lights,"  and  the  longer  it  is,  the  more  heat  will  be  de- 
veloped, and  the  more  in  amount  will  be  retained. 

In  whatever  manner  the  frame  is  made;  whether  the 
planks,  which  should  be  one  and  one-half  inch  thick, 
are  nailed  to  corner  posts,  driven  into  the  ground,  or 
secured  by  battens,  the  chief  outlook  is,  to  have  it  fit 
closely  in  all  its  parts,  and  to  have  the  sash  adapted  to  it 
so  snugly,  that  there  will  be  no  openings  for  the  exit  of 
warm,  or  the  entrance  of  cold  air. 


80  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

A  sufficient  pitch  will  be  secured  to  carry  off  the  water, 
if  the  back  is  two  feet,  and  the  front  one  foot  high.  On 
each  end  of  the  frame  a  strip  should  be  nailed  to  retain 
the  two  outside  sashes  in  position.  Each  two  sashes 
should  be  separated  by  a  half-inch  strip,  nailed  upon  a 
three-inch-wide  sliding  piece,  which  latter  is  let  flush 
into  the  edge  of  the  back  and  front,  and  will  leave  one 
and  one-fourth  inch  upon  which  the  sashes  are  to  rest  and 
slide.  If  a  small  groove  is  made  along  each  edge  of  the 
middle  strip,  the  water  will  be  carried  off  more  effectu- 
ally. The  drip  into  the  beds  is  sometimes  damaging. 

If  the  site  is  exposed  to  high  winds,  yellow  pine  is 
preferable  to  white  pine  for  the  sash,  on  account  of  its 
greater  weight.  The  sash  should  be  three  by  six  feet, 
with  glass  not  larger  than  eight  by  ten.  The  smaller  the 
glass  the  less  expensive  the  breaks.  The  panes  are  to  be 
puttied  to  the  sash,  and  to  overlap  each  other  like  shin- 
gles. As  dust  collects  between  them  and  obstructs  the 
light,  the  laps  should  not  be  more  than  one-fourth  of  an 
inch  wide. 

COLD  FRAMES  AND   THEIR   USES. 

Such  is  a  hot-bed.  The  site,  the  frame,  and  the  sash 
for  a  cold  frame  are  as  above  described.  The  difference 
between  the  two  is  solely,  that  the  former  is  heated  by 
fermenting  material,  which  creates  "bottom  heat,"  while 
the  latter  is  warmed  by  the  confined  heat  of  the  sun  alone. 
For  a  cold  frame,  the  soil  should  be  elevated  six  inches 
above  the  general  level,  and  finely  spaded  up  and  raked. 

Glass  is  the  proper  material  for  sash,  and  the  cheapest 
in  the  end.  Frames  covered  with  cotton  cloth  may  be 
used  as  a  substitute,  however.  To  render  the  cloth  more 
translucent,  the  following  ingredients  may  be  used  :  one 
quart  pale  linseed  oil,  four  ounces  resin,  and  one  ounce 
sugar  of  lead.  The  sugar  of  lead  should  be  ground  with 
a  little  of  the  oil,  then  the  remainder  of  the  oil  and 


HOT-BEDS,    COLD   FRAMES,    AND  WEATHER.  81 

resin,  melted  together,  should  be  added,  and  the  varnish 
applied  with  a  wide  brush  while  warm. 

The  following  directions  apply  to  the  cold  frame  alone: 
According  to  the  nature  and  size  of  the  seed,  and  the 
character  of  the  soil,  the  seeds  are  to  be  sown  fiom  one- 
fourth  of  an  inch  to  an  inch  deep  in  drills,  three  or  four 
inches  apart  across  the  bed,  and  more  thinly  at  the  back 
and  front,  than  near  the  middle  of  the  bed.  Each  va- 
riety should  be  sown  in  separate  cold  frames,  or,  when 
not  practicable,  only  such  should  be  sown  together,  as 
require  about  the  same  degree  of  heat  to  germinate,  and 
particularly  such  as  demand  the  same  management  and 
protection,  until  the  plants  are  removed.  Thus  egg- 
plants should  not  be  sown  in  the  same  frame  with  to- 
matoes, nor  the  latter  with  cabbages  and  cauliflowers, 
while  the  latter  two  may  go  together  with  lettuce  in  the 
same  frame.  If  the  weather  is  dry,  and  the  soil  sandy,  a 
watering  after  sowing  may  be  required  to  germinate  the 
seed. 

In  the  subsequent  management,  it  must  be  borne  in 
mind,  that  retardation  for  the  production  of  stocky 
plants,  rather  than  acceleration  of  growth,  is  an  object, 
provided  the  seeds  were  sown  sufficiently  early.  Damp- 
ness and  heat  produce  an  elongated  rather  than  a  healthy 
growth,  and  too  much  of  either  must  be  avoided.  The 
glass  is  to  be  used  only  as  a  means  of  protection  against 
the  inclemency  of  the  weather.  In  case  of  heavy  rains, 
the  sash  should  be  pushed  down  sufficiently  to  carry  off 
the  water  beyond  the  confines  of  the  frame.  During 
severe  freezing  weather,  particularly  in  clear  nights,  when 
radiation  is  most  active,  the  covering  of  glass  alone  will 
sometimes  be  inadequate  to  protect  even  as  hardy  a  plant 
as  cauliflower^  and  some  opaque  covering  upon  the  glass 
becomes  necessary.  Mats,  or  light  shutters  of  wood,  are 
best.  Old  pieces  of  carpet  will  answer  the  purpose.  For 
many  years,  I  have  used  the  leaves  of  our  large  palmetto 


82  TKUCK-FAKMIKG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

with  satisfaction.  One  stirring  of  the  soil  between  the 
rows,  if  attended  with  thorough  weeding,  will  be  cultiva- 
tion enough  for  seedlings. 

As  soon  as  the  plants  are  large  enough  to  be  safely 
handled,  they  should  be  thinned  out  to  prevent  crowd- 
ing, and,  as  all  kinds  of  vegetable  plants  raised  in  cold 
frames  at  the  South  are  benefited  by  being  transplanted, 
they  should  be  pricked  out  into  other  frames,  and  set 
from  three  to  four  and  one-half  inches  or  more  apart 
each  way,  according  to  variety  and  space  at  disposal.  If 
no  such  extra  cold  frames  are  available,  and  the  plants 
must  remain  in  the  seed-bed,  until  the  final  transplant- 
ing into  the  open  field,  then  the  thinning  should  be  with 
the  view  to  afford  them  space  to  grow  strong  and  stocky, 
and  the  surplus  plants  may  be  thrown  away.  Before 
the  final  removal,  the  plants,  whether  pricked  out  or 
not,  should  be  watered,  in  case  the  soil  is  dry,  in  order 
that  earth  may  adhere  to  the  fibrous  roots,  to  keep  them 
fresh,  and  facilitate  transplanting.  I  have  indicated 
how  plants  may  be  protected  from  the  effects  of  frost, 
and  may  add  that  it  will  hardly  ever  pay  the  truck- 
farmer,  planting  on  any  but  a  very  small  scale,  to  resort 
to  any  means  of  protection.  He  should  have  a  suffi- 
ciency of  plants,  however,  to  replace  any  killed  by  cold. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


TRANSPLANTING. 


The  following  remarks  are  intended  to  apply  to  vege- 
table plants  and  to  those  of  the  strawberry  only. 

When  a  plant  is  removed  from  the  soil  in  which  the  seed 
germinated,  which  provided  it  in  its  early  growth  with 
nourishment  and  moisture,  the  contact  of  the  roots  with 


TRANSPLANTING.  83 

the  particles  of  soil  is  not  only  interrupted,  but  some  of 
the  most  important  roots  themselves  are  broken,  and  the 
plant  is  deprived  of  the  absorbent  points  of  the  small 
rootlets.  The  evaporation  from  the  leaves  still  con- 
tinues, though  moisture  can  no  longer  be  absorbed  by  the 
roots.  The  important  operation  of  transplanting  is  prop- 
erly performed,  when  the  equilibrium  between  these 
functions  of  the  roots  and  the  leaves  is  soonest  reestab- 
tablished.  If  plants  are  transplanted  to  a  wet,  and  par- 
ticularly heavy  soil,  the  part  pressed  to  the  roots  will 
bake  and  contract,  leaving  cracks  and  open  spaces  near 
the  roots.  The  earth,  into  which  plants  are  to  be 
shifted,  should  be  freshly  dug,  as  this  seems  to  encour- 
age an  early  emission  of  young  rootlets ;  and  it  should 
be  as  fine  as  possible,  so  that  every  part  of  the  roots  may 
come  in  contact  with  soil  and  moisture. 

By  the  removal  of  leaves,  evaporation  is  not  destroyed, 
but  only  diminished;  for  it  also  takes  place  through 
young  bark.  In  our  hot  climates,  a  portion  of  the 
leaves  of  all  vegetables,  in  proportion  to  the  injury  sus- 
tained by  the  roots,  should  be  removed  at  the  time  of 
transplanting  To  what  extent  this  must  be  done,  will 
be  given  for  each  kind  hereafter. 

A  moist  state  of  the  atmosphere  prevents  perspiration, 
or  evaporation  from  the  leaves,  and  such  a  condition  is 
most  favorable  for  transplanting.  Still,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  some  very  delicate  plants  not  able  to  survive  a  dry 
atmosphere,  such  as  cucumbers,  etc. ,  it  is  not  necessary 
to  await  a  rain  before  doing  the  work.  If  the  earth  has 
been  freshly  stirred,  and  is  moist  enough  to  allow  plant- 
ing holes  to  be  made  by  the  dibble,  without  caving  in, 
and  the  soil  is  not  very  sandy,  new  roots  will  soon  com- 
mence to  grow,  and  the  warm  soil  will  push  them  rapidly 
forwards. 

The  truck-farmer,  planting  upon  an  extensive  scale, 
has  often  to  depend  not  only  upon  mere  unskilled,  but 


84  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

upon  stupid  labor,  and  were  it  not  for  the  seemingly 
imperishable  character  of  some  vegetables,  the  percentage 
of  loss  would  be  much  greater.  The  planting  is  either 
too  shallow  or  too  deep,  and  the  soil  is  not  uniformly 
pressed  to  the  roots,  which  are  put  into  the  ground  im- 
properly. 

In  transplanting  such  plants  as  the  strawberry,  the 
fibrous  roots  should  be  spread  out  as  much  as  possible, 
while  the  root  of  a  tap-rooted  plant,  as  the  cabbage,  beet, 
etc.,  should  be  placed  regularly  up  and  down  and  not 
bent  upon  itself.  If  such  a  root  is  bent,  the  nutritive 
matter  in  descending  from  the  leaves  will  be  interrupted 
at  the  bend,  and  new  rootlets  will  be  slow  to  appear  be- 
yond it.  In  transplanting  the  soil  should  be  uniformly, 
but  not  harshly,  pressed  to  the  roots  their  entire  length, 
from  the  extreme  lower  point  upwards. 

With  the  exception  of  asparagus,  horseradish,  onions, 
and  such  plants  as  emit  new  roots  along  the  lower  por- 
tion of  the  stem,  as  tomatoes,  cabbage,  etc.,  it  is  a  safe 
rule  to  put  down  the  plant  to  the  depth  at  which  it  orig- 
inally grew. 

In  sandy  soil  it  occasionally  becomes  necessary,  in  a 
drouth,  during  an  entire  transplanting  season,  to  water 
the  plants  after  they  are  set  out.  In  this  case  the  watered 
surface  should  be  covered  with  dry  soil  to  prevent  baking. 

In  a  loose,  fine,  light  soil,  free  from  sticks,  shells,  peb- 
bles, etc.,  the  hand  alone  may  be  used  in  transplanting 
on  a  small  scale;  but  either  the  planting  stick  or  dibble, 
or  the  trowel  is  preferable.  The  trowel  is  the  safer 
implement  in  the  hand  of  an  unskilled  workman.  In 
using  the  dibble,  it  is  thrust  into  the  soil  to  make  a  hole 
to  at  least  the  full  depth  at  which  the  plant  is  to  be  in- 
serted, the  hole  is  then  widened  by  a  rotary  motion  of 
the  implement.  To  insert  the  plant  properly,  it  is  held 
between  the  thumb  and  index  finger  of  the  left  hand, 
and  thus  placed  in  the  hole;  the  dibble  is  then  plunged 


85 


into  the  ground  two  or  three  inches  from  the  plant  in  a 
direction  with  its  point  toward  and  a  little  below  the 
end  of  the  root.  The  engraving,  figure  3,  shows  the 
hole  made  by  the  dibble  with  the  root  of  the  plant  with- 
in it.  The  dibble  is  thrust  into  the  ground,  ready  to  fix 
the  root  in  place;  by  using  the  point,  «,  as  a  fulcrum, 
and  moving  the  handle  of  the  dibble  from  b  to  c,  the  soil 


Fig.  3.— PROPER  USE  OF  THE  DIBBLE. 

will  be  pressed  to  the  root  for  its  entire  length,  from  a 
to  c.  If  this  is  done  with  sufficient  force,  it  will  fix  a 
delicate  plant  so  firmly  in  the  soil,  that  if  it  be  pulled  by 
the  top  of  a  leaf,  that  will  give  way  before  the  plant  can 
be  pulled  up.  If  the  dibble  is  inserted  perpendicularly 
or  parallel  to  the  plant,  instead  of  at  an  angle,  or  if  it  be 
partly  withdrawn,  before  the  movement  from  b  to  c  is 
completed,  the  soil  will  only  be  pressed  to  the  root  at  the 
top,  leaving  its  more  important  part  loosely  suspended  in 
an  open  excavation  in  the  soil,  as  seen  in  fig.  4.  Planting 
proceeds  most  conveniently  from  left  to  right.  When 


86 


TRTJCK-FARMIKG   AT  THE  SOUTH. 


the  trowel  is  used,  the  operation  is  the  same,  except  that 
the  implement  is  inserted  in  front  of  the  plant,  instead 
of  at  the  side. 

When  plants  are  taken  up  so  carefully  that  few  of  the 
small  roots  are  ruptured  and  with  the  soil  adhering,  or 
when  they  are  turned  out  of  flower-pots,  they  will  start 


Fig.   4. — IMPROPER  USE  OF  THE   DIBBLE. 


more  readily;  but  they  will  not  make  so  luxuriant  a 
growth  of  leaves,  nor  will  they  develope  as  much  fruit,  as 
when  a  part  of  the  roots  has  been  broken.  This  is  not 
in  consequence  of  the  rupture  in  itself,  but  because  at 
and  above  the  points  of  injury,  numerous  small  fibrous 
roots  are  emitted,  which  are  capable  of  providing  the 
plant  with  an  increased  amount  of  nourishment. 


WATER  AND  WATERING. 


The  following  table  by  Werner  shows  the  leaf  surface 
of  ruta-baga  turnips  both  of  plants  grown  directly  from 
the  seed,  and  of  those  subsequently  transplanted. 


Average 
Number 
of  Leaves. 

Average 
Surface    of 
each  Leaf. 

Average 
Surface  of 
all  the  Leaves. 

Ruta-baga     Turnips   di- 
rectly from  seed  
"       transplanted  — 

18 
18 

150  sq.  centimet's. 

190  " 

2,700  sq.  centimet'i 
3,430  «          " 

CHAPTER  IX. 


WATER  AND  WATERING. 

Water  is  the  medium  by  which  the  soluble  matters  of 
the  soil  are  conveyed,  through  the  roots,  into  the  in- 
terior organism  of  plants.  We  know  that  the  earth, 
only  apparently  dry,  cannot  support  vegetation.  The  more 
advanced  the  state  of  growth,  so  long  as  the  foliage  re- 
mains young  and  succulent,  the  more  moisture  does  a 
plant  need.  An  important  fact  in  the  relation  of  vege- 
tation to  moisture  is  seen  in  the  effect  the  humidity  of 
the  atmosphere  has  upon  its  temperature.  Without 
more  or  less  vapor  in  the  atmosphere,  radiation  would 
cool  the  surface  of  the  earth  so  rapidly  as  to  destroy  the 
life  of  all  tender  plants.  The  hottest  rays  of  the  sun 
pass  through  the  air,  even  when  that  is  saturated  with 
moisture,  without  heating  it;  but  the  heat  radiated  from 
the  earth,  and  every  object  upon  it,  is  intercepted  and 
absorbed  by  the  humidity  in  the  air;  and  the  atmospheric 
warmth  is  therefore  in  proportion  to  the  heat  of  the  sun's 
rays  and  the  moisture  of  the  air.  Like  the  covering  of  a 
cold  frame,  the  moist  air  admits  the  heat  by  day  and 


88  TRUCK-FARMIHG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

prevents  its  departure  at  night.  Hence  the  clearest, 
driest  nights  are  the  coldest.  Hence  the  driest  regions, 
like  the  desert  of  Sahara,  have  the  coldest  nights,  and  the 
cold  of  high  elevations  is  due  to  the  same  cause. 

Prof.  Tyndall  says:  "The  removal,  fora  single  sum- 
mer night,  of  the  aqueous  vapor  from  the  atmosphere 
that  covers  England,  would  be  attended  by  the  destruc- 
tion of  every  plant  which  a  freezing  temperature  would 
kill."  Humidity  and  temperature  are  therefore  inti- 
mately connected. 

Although  the  heat  of  the  sun  causes  evaporation  from 
plants,  its  amount  is  governed  by  the  humidity  of  the 
air  and  the  velocity  of  the  wind.  If  the  gardener  could 
regulate  the  moisture  of  the  atmosphere  surrounding  his 
crops,  and  make  it  most  favorable  for  keeping  up  the 
proper  evaporation,  by  applying  water  artificially  and 
only  in  circumscribed  limits,  to  their  roots,  he  could  be 
assured  of  success.  While  he  may  do  so  in  his  green- 
house, there  are  no  means  of  regulating  the  heat  and 
moisture  of  the  open  air.  It  is  therefore  that  watering 
out-door  crops,  in  our  hot  climate,  is  more  often  pro- 
ductive of  harm  than  of  benefi  t. 

When  the  earth  is  naturally  moistened  by  rain,  the 
whole  air  is  saturated  with  moisture,  preventing  a  too 
rapid  perspiration  from  the  leaves  and  the  evaporation 
from  the  soil.  If  watering  is  done  at  all,  it  should  be  in 
cloudy  weather;  but  it  is  most  frequently  injudiciously 
practised  in  dry,  hot  weather,  and  so  circumscribed  in  ex- 
tent, that  it  can  have  little  or  no  effect  upon  the  atmos- 
phere. The  roots  are  temporarily  excited,  and  the  dry, 
hot  air  robs  the  plant  of  the  moisture  through  the  leaves 
as  rapidly  as  it  can  be  pumped  up  by  the  roots.  As  soon 
as  the  temporary  supply  is  exhausted,  the  plant  not  only 
returns  to  its  former  state  of  suffering,  but  is  left  more 
susceptible  to  injury  than  before.  If  the  watering  is 
repeated,  the  emission  of  rootlets  near  the  surface  is  en- 


WATER  AND  WATERING.  89 

couraged,  and  these  grow,  merely  to  perish  again  unless 
the  water  is  continued.  Another  injury  may  occur 
through  the  decrease  of  temperature  caused  by  rapid 
evaporation  and  perspiration. 

In  our  hot  climate,  during  drouths,  vegetation  is 
greatly  sustained  by  the  moisture  which  is  returned  to 
the  earth  in  the  form  of  dews;  and  in  order  that  these 
may  be  most  beneficial,  the  soil  should  be  deeply  stirred 
and  continue  in  a  mellow  condition  upon  the  surface. 
When  the  soil  is  puddled  and  compacted  around  a  plant 
by  local  watering,  the  amount  of  dew  will  be  less  from 
the  decrease  in  the  number  of  points  of  radiation  pre- 
sented by  the  compact  ball;  besides  the  diminished  quan- 
tity is  evaporated  from  the  impenetrable  crust  without 
being  able  to  reach  the  roots.  If  watered,  the  earth 
should  therefore  be  stirred  subsequently,  or  the  watered 
surface  be  covered  with  fresh,  loose  soil. 

If  practised  at  all,  the  watering  should,  in  hot  weather, 
be  applied  to  the  roots  and  not  to  the  foliage.  Evening 
is  the  proper  time  of  day,  unless  in  the  exceptional  case 
of  watering  cold  frames,  when  frost  is  apprehended. 
It  is  then  advisable  to  water  in  the  morning.  The 
water  should  not  be  much  colder  than  the  surround- 
ing atmosphere.  Where  there  are  facilities  for  moistening 
the  whole  mass  of  soil  by  irrigation,  that  should  not  be 
neglected;  for  its  great  benefits  are  undoubted.  But  even 
then,  unless  the  surface  is  so  densely  covered  with  the 
growing  crop,  as  to  protect  it  from  being  baked  by  the 
sun,  it  would  be  best  to  allow  the  moisture  to  reach  the 
roots  through  percolation  from  ditches  or  drain  pipes 
near  enough  to  each  other  and  kept  full,  than  to  cover 
the  soil  with  water.  A  crop  supplied  with  a  sufficiency 
of  soluble  manure  will  suffer  less  during  drouth  than  one 
inadequately  fertilized,  and  the  latter  will  require  an 
abundance  of  water. 

The  fertilizing  effects  of  mulching  the  soil  are  men- 


90  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

tioned  elsewhere.  It  remains  here  to  be  remarked  that  a 
mulch  or  covering  to  the  soil  will  shade  the  ground  from 
the  hot  sun  and  maintain  an  equal  temperature.  It  pre- 
vents the  too  rapid  evaporation  and  drying  of  the  soil, 
and  is  therefore  to  be  recommended  with  or  without 
watering. 


CHAPTER    X. 


PACKING   AND   MAKKETS. 

It  should  be  remembered  by  the  grower  and  shipper 
of  fruit  and  vegetables  to  Northern  markets  that,  while 
his  produce  may  be  of  the  best  quality,  it  will  return 
him  unsatisfactory  prices,  if  put  up  in  packages  which 
present  to  the  buyer  an  unattractive  or  unclean  appear- 
ance. His  first  consideration,  then,  after  securing  a 
good  crop,  is  to  have  his  barrels,  crates,  etc.,  clean  and 
bright,  and  well  and  symmetrically  made,  neatness  being 
very  important.  The  matter  next  in  importance  is,  that 
the  packages  be  not  only  full  at  departure,  but  that  they 
be  also  full  on  their  arrival  at  their  destination.  They 
should  not,  therefore,  be  filled  in  a  careless,  haphazard 
manner,  hastily  headed  up,  and  hurriedly  dispatched. 
The  contents  should  be  so  placed,  or  thoroughly  shaken 
down,  whenever  the  character  of  the  article  will  permit, 
as  to  leave  no  vacant  spaces  to  be  filled  out  by  the  jar- 
ring received  in  transit,  thus  causing  an  empty  space  at 
the  top,  and  permitting  the  stuff  to  be  bruised  by  being 
shaken  or  rolled  about  within  the  package.  The  con- 
tents of  the  barrel  or  crate  should  bulge  up  beyond  the 
level,  so  that  force  will  be  required  to  press  on  the  head 
or  cover.  A  slight  bruising  of  the  upper  layer  is  of  but 


PACKING  AND  MAHKETS.  91 

little  consequence.  Special  directions  will  be  given  for 
packing  each  variety  of  vegetable.  No  vegetable  or 
fruit  of  inferior  value  (I  am  not  alluding  to  size),  with 
the  slightest  indication  of  decay  or  of  over-ripeness, 
should  be  put  up;  for  the  packer  should  bear  in  mind 
that  a  speck,  now  only  faintly  perceptible  to  him,  will 
some  days  later  appear  as  an  odious  blemish  in  the  eyes 
of  the  purchaser.  The  decay  of  a  single  individual  may 
be  communicated  to  and  injure  the  rest. 

If  vegetables  or  fruit  of  a  second  quality  are  worth 
less  at  home  than  if  forwarded,  let  them  be  put  up  in 
separate  packages,  and  not  allowed  to  detract  from  the 
quality  and  market  value  of  the  first  grade  by  mixing 
the  two  together.  If  articles  of  the  first  quality  and  the 
"culls"  are  shipped  in  separate  packages,  they  bring 
better  prices  than  when  they  are  put  up  together.  The 
decrease  in  value  is  out  of  all  proportion  to  the  slight 
increase  in  bulk. 

The  pernicious  habit  of  packing  articles  of  a  better 
quality  at  the  top  of  a  barrel  or  other  package,  and  those 
of  an  inferior  below  ("deaconing"  or  "topping"),  is 
neither  more  nor  less  than  an  attempt  at  fraud,  to  be 
shunned  by  every  honest  grower,  while  it  is  a  reflection 
on  the  discernment  or  acuteness  of  the  buyer.  To  the 
gardener  who  expects  to  continue  shipping  vegetables, 
who  hopes  for  satisfactory  returns,  and  wishes  his  brand 
or  mark  favorably  known  in  the  markets  to  which  he 
sends  his  crops,  I  should  recommend  the  other  extreme. 

The  laths  of  a  crate  should  not  be  far  enough  apart  to 
allow  their  edges  to  indent  or  cut  such  vegetables  as  to- 
matoes, cucumbers,  etc.,  and  yet  be  sufficiently  distant 
to  ventilate  the  package  as  much  as  possible.  The  heads 
and  sides  of  barrels  should  be  cut  to  admit  air  freely. 
None  but  good,  strong,  clean,  round-hooped  potato  or 
flour  barrels  should  be  used  for  shipping  purposes. 


TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH'. 
BUSHEL  AND  BARREL  CRATES. 

A  bushel  crate  requires  a  centre-piece  and  two  end- 
pieces;  these  are  eight  by  fourteen  inches.  The  laths 
two  feet  in  length,  and  of  a  width  suited  to  the  kind  of 
vegetable  to  be  packed.  For  tomatoes,  the  laths  should 
be  fully  two  inches  wide.  For  purposes  of  ventilation 
and  convenient  handling  of  the  crate,  the  middle  and 


Fig  5. —A  BUSHEL  CRATE. 

end-pieces  are  made  octagonal  by  having  the  corners 
sawed  off.  The  capacity  of  such  a  crate  is  two  thousand 
two  hundred  and  twenty-one  cubic  inches,  while  a  legal 
bushel  contains  two  thousand  one  hundred  and  fifty  cubic 
inches.  The  width  of  the  lath  should  be  about  one-half 
inch  less  than  the  dimension  at  the  corner,  in  order  to 
permit  access  of  air  when  the  crates  are  closely  stowed  on 
shipboard.  The  figure  represents  a  bushel  crate  ready 


PACKING   AND    MAEKETS. 


93 


for  packing.  If  the  first  four  laths  with  which  the  con- 
struction of  a  crate  usually  commences,  #,  b,  c,  and  d,  in 
figure  5,  are  a  trifle  thicker  than  the  others,  ventilation 
will  be  more  effectively  secured  in  a  pile  of  crates. 

If  the  contents  are  to  be  shaken  down,  two  laths  are 
placed  loosely  over  the  bulging  vegetables,  to  prevent 
their  jarring  out;  and  grasping  the  ends  of  the  crate  at 
A  and  B>  each  end  is  lifted  by  the  packer,  and  allowed 
to  come  down  alternately  with  a  sudden  thump,  and  this 


Fig.   6.— A  BARREL  CRATE. 

process  is  continued  until  the  contents  have  thoroughly 
settled. 

Each  crate  should  be  plainly  and  neatly  marked  by  a 
stencil  plate  on  both  ends,  with  the  name  or  initials  both 
of  the  shipper  and  the  consignee.  When  a  mark  has 
been  adopted,  it  should  be  retained,  so  that  it  may  be 
known  by  the  buyers.  Old  brands  on  second-hand 
barrels  should  be  thoroughly  removed  by  the  scraper,  be- 
fore they  are  marked. 

The  wood  from  which  the  crate?  are  niade  should  be 


94  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

inodorous.  On  account  of  its  odor,  cypress  is  objection- 
able. Sappy  yellow  pine  makes  the  brightest,  lightest 
laths,  and  splits  less  readily  than  heart-wood. 

The  dimensions  of  the  barrel  crate  (fig.  6)  are  eleven 
inches  wide,  twenty  inches  deep,  and  thirty-nine  inches 
long.  These  crates  are  best  made  of  slats,  3/8  X  21/,  X  39 
inches,  and  3/4  X  21/,  x  39  inches.  A  thicker  slat  is  nailed 
on  the  edges  of  the  end  pieces,  to  afford  ventilation,  and 
the  crates  are  headed  up  with  pieces  3/4X6x39  inches. 

Figure  7  shows  six  strips,  nailed  upon  thick  plank,  in 
order  to  hold  the  head  and  centre-pieces  upright,  and  at 
the  proper  distance  apart,  facilitating  the  making  of 


Fig.  7.— BLOCK  FOK  NAILING  CBATES. 

crates.  At  c  is  a  centre-piece  in  position.  These  are 
aligned  by  having  all  touch  the  board,  a,  b.  The  most 
convenient  position  for  nailing  crates  is  a  seat  on  a 
low  stool,  in  front  of  the  above  platform  on  the  floor, 
though  a  standing  position  might  suit  a  young  person 
better.  Of  course  the  material,  including  nails,  should 
be  within  easy  reach. 

THE   MARKETS. 

To  market  a  crop  profitably,  or  to  know  where  and  to 
whom  to  consign  it,  is  as  indispensable  to  the  farmer,  as 
to  be  able  to  produce  it  successfully.  While  an  article 
may  command  a  good  price  in  one  market,  it,  at  the 
same  time,  may  hardly  pay  the  freight  charges  in  an- 
other. Even  distinct  varieties  of  the  same  vegetable  may 
one  market  better  than  another,  and  it  is  necessary 


PACKING   AND  MARKETS.  95 

to  learn  the  peculiarities  of  each.  Tomatoes  are  sold  to 
better  advantage  in  Baltimore  and  Boston  than  in  any 
other  Northern  market.  Cauliflowers  and  melons  will  not 
pay  in  Baltimore,  while  both  sell  well  in  Boston  and  New 
York,  the  former  being  a  better  market  than  New  York 
for  melons.  The  red  sweet  potato,  although  not  the  pop' 
ular  variety,  is  more  salable  in  Boston  than  in  New 
York.  White  onions  will  sell  higher  than  red  ones  in 
New  York,  while  there  is  but  slight  difference  between 
the  two  in  Boston.  I  have  rarely  had  reason  to  be  pleased 
with  sales  in  Philadelphia,  and  of  late  years  have  shipped 
very  little  to  that  market;  nevertheless  I  am  constrained 
to  add  that  I  have  been  told  of  several  satisfactory  sales 
there  during  the  past  season.  My  experience  has  taught 
me  that  New  York  is,  on  the  whole,  the  best  market  for 
the  bulk  of  the  crops. 

I  have  no  personal  knowledge  of  the  "Western  markets 
and  commission  merchants;  but  I  learn  that  the  ship- 
ments have  given  satisfactory  returns.  It  is  probable 
that,  with  improved  transportation  facilities,  considerable 
shipments  will  be  made  to  the  Western  cities  hereafter. 
In  every  market  there  are  doubtless  many  excellent,  hon- 
est, and  trustworthy  firms,  the  standing  of  which,  as  that 
of  all  others,  is  ascertainable  at  mercantile  agencies.  Old 
and  experienced  truck-farmers  have  their  tried  and  ap- 
proved consignees,  and  it  is  important  for  the  beginner 
to  exercise  great  care  in  the  selection  of  his  commission 
house,  and,  when  one  has  been  fixed  upon,  it  is  not  well 
to  make  a  change  for  a  trivial  reason. 


96  tBUCK-FABMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

CHAPTER  XL 

INSECTS  AND  THEIR  REMEDIES. 

1'he  working  farmer  is  so  occupied  in  the  pursuit  of  his 
profession,  and  by  the  study  of  the  phenomena  by  which 
he  is  surrounded,  upon  a  correct  appreciation  of  which 
his  succor  will  largely  depend,  that  he  rarely  has  sufficient 
time  to  devote  to  botany  or  entomology  as  a  science. 
The  laws  of  vegetable  growth,  an  intimate  knowledge  of 
useful  and  noxious  plants,  and,  above  all,  a  clear  percep- 
tion of,  and  discrimination  between  his  friends  and  foes 
in  the  insect  world,  are  among  his  urgent  needs.  Next 
to  the  contingencies  of  season,  his  prosperity  will  depend 
upon  the  extent  of  insect  depredations.  Millions  of  dol- 
lars' worth  of  property  arc  annually  destroyed  by  in- 
sects, and  a  knowledge  of  their  habits  is  required,  that 
we  may  learn  how  to  deal  with  them,  in  order  to  stay 
their  ravages.  If  farmers  more  correctly  appreciated  the 
aggregate  losses  by  insects,  they  would  probably  take  a 
deeper  interest  in  studying  them. — (See  Exodus  x:  5, 
14-15.) 

In  A.  D.  591,  a  vast  horde  of  locusts  ravaged  Italy. 
From  the  stench  of  their  decaying  carcasses  arose  a  pesti- 
lence which  carried  off  nearly  a  million  men  and  beasts. 
In  the  Venetian  Territory,  in  1478,  the  same  insect 
created  a  famine,  during  which  thirty  thousand  persons 
died  of  starvation.  So  well  did  the  Arabians  know  their 
power,  that  they  make  a  locust  say  to  Mahomet:  "We 
are  the  army  of  the  great  God;  we  produce  ninety -nine 
eggs;  if  the  hundred  were  completed,  we  should  consume 
the  whole  earth  and  all  that  is  .in  it."  Professor  Riley 
estimated  the  annual  loss  from  insect  depredations  in 
Missouri  at  fifteen  to  twenty  millions  of  dollars,  and  the 


INSECTS  AND  THEIR  REMEDIES.  97 

losses  in  the  United  States  probably  amount  to  such  an 
enormous  sum,  that  nearly  fifty  million  dollars  might  be 
saved  through  a  more  generally  extended  knowledge  of 
the  habits  of  insects.  If  insects  play  such  a  part  in  our 
economy,  and,  if  the  farmer's  property  is  more  liable  to 
injury  than  that  of  any  other  class,  who  more  than  him- 
self should  be  interested  in  them,  and  the  remedies 
to  abate  the  evil?  There  is  no  part  of  animated  nature 
more  vital  to  our  welfare  than  insects,  of  which  there 
are  about  fifty  thousand  species  inhabiting  the  United 
States. 

The  study  of  entomology  has  been  frequently  looked 
down  upon  by  the  ignorant  with  ridicule,  in  consequence 
of  the  minuteness  of  many  of  its  objects;  yet  it  is  exactly 
in  these  small  members  of  creation  that  are  exhibited  the 
most  wonderful  adaptations  of  means  to  purposes,  and 
the  most  amazing  wisdom  of  the  Creator! 

Can  the  tiger,  with  its  fierce  leap,  by  which  he  catches 
his  prey,  and  the  retractile  claw,  by  which  he  secures  it, 
or  the  giraffe,  with  his  long  neck  and  tongue,  by  which  he 
reaches  the  leaves,  many  feet  from  the  ground,  be  com- 
pared with  the  spider?  This  insect  lurks  behind  a  screen 
of  its  own  manufacture,  ready  to  pounce  upon  and  tie  up 
any  helpless  insect,  which  conveys  to  it  by  the  vibration 
of  the  web,  the  intelligence  of  its  entanglement.  In 
this  web  each  single  thread  consists  of  many  thousands 
•rf  finer  strands,  a  part  only  of  which  in  the  net  of  geomet- 
ric spiders,  the  circles,  is  provided  with  a  viscid  covering 
V>  hold  the  captive.  Which  seems  the  greater  manifesta- 
tion of  divine  wisdom:  the  clumsy  she  bear  that  brings 
food  to  her  hungry  cubs,  directly  appealing  to  her  ma- 
ternal care,  or  the  sand-wasp,  which,  after  depositing  an 
egg  in  a  cell  at  the  bottom  of  a  cylindrical  cavity  in  the 
Band,  supplies  the  future  larva  with  food  in  the  form  of 
insects  ?  She  so  regulates  the  number  of  these,  that  the 
larva  may  have  sufficient  food  \  she  stings  the  insects* 
5 


98  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

without  killing  them,  as  they  would  then  putrefy,  but 
just  enough  to  keep  them  in  a  dormant  state  until 
wanted.  How  wonderful  the  instinct  of  a  mother  to 
provide  food  for  offspring  she  will  never  behold  !  Every 
individual  of  the  species,  the  descendant  of  countless 
ancestors,  has  thus  fulfilled  this  maternal  duty  for 
ages  past.  Had  the  sand- wasp,  for  a  single  season, 
neglected  its  instinctive  work,  there  would  be  no  "  horse- 
guards"  to  keep  the  cow-fly  under  control,  and  in  a 
measure  to  protect  our  cattle  on  the  sea  coast  from 
their  annoyance.  The  most  efficient  aids  to  man  in  keep- 
ing the  increase  of  injurious  insects  within  due  limits, 
are  their  natural  enemies  of  the  insect  world,  and  some 
of  the  insectivorous  birds;  for  other  birds  devour  indis- 
criminately, both  the  useful  and  injurious  insects.  There 
are  also  certain  families  of  insects,  which  depredate  upon 
fche  farmer's  crops,  and  diminish  his  income,  and  certain 
other  kinds,  which  prey  upon  these,  and  are  therefore 
our  friends  and  auxiliaries.  Horticulture,  it  has  been 
truly  said,  is  a  war  with  insects,  and  we  must  antagonize 
the  former,  and  wage  a  relentless  war  against  them,  while 
we  patronize,  protect,  and  foster  the  useful  insects  to  the 
best  of  our  ability. 

If  the  farmer  remains  ignorant  of  these  mutual  rela- 
tions between  insects,  a  knowledge  of  the  more  common 
instances  being  readily  acquired,  how  is  he  to  discrimi- 
nate between  friend  and  foe,  so  that  he  may  not  be  guilty 
of  the  evident  impropriety  of  destroying  both?  How 
often  has  the  useful  little  friendly  lady-bug  been  mis- 
taken for  the  parent  of  the  plant-lice,  and  been  pitiless- 
ly destroyed? 

If  he  that  makes  two  blades  of  grass  to  grow,  where 
onlv  one  grew  before,  is  a  benefactor  to  mankind,  he 
that  protects  both  from  needless  destruction,  is  not 
less  a  benefactor  !  Therefore,  while  it  is  not  within  the 
power  of  man  to  wipe  injurious  insects  from  the  face  of 


INSECTS   AND   THEIR    REMEDIES.  99 

the  earth,  he  may  limit  the  destruction  of  property  they 
cause,  and  it  is  to  the  farmer's  interest,  and  is  his  duty, 
to  wage  a  united  war  against  them,  knowing  no  to- 
morrow in  its  prosecution,  but  killing  and  destroying 
wherever  and  whenever  possible,  and  employing  every 
means  in  his  power.  Individual  effort  can  avail  little, 
and  concerted  action  is  necessary. 

In  our  climate,  insects  generally  have  two  broods  in  a 
season.  Most  of  those  which  survive  the  winter  in  their 
perfect  state  are  fertilized  females,  and  all  insects,  if  left 
unmolested  early  in  the  season,  will  propagate  their  spe- 
cies, and  the  second  brood  will  outnumber  the  first  a 
hundred  or  a  thousand-fold. 

While  recommending  a  determined  crusade  against  all 
insect  pests,  I  would,  from  the  same  motive,  protest 
against  the  pernicious  habit,  so  common  all  over  the 
cc  untry,  of  indiscriminately  taking  the  life  of  the  lower 
animals  inhabiting  the  fields  and  woods;  for  the  reason, 
that  many  reptiles,  the  toads  and  moles,  are  our  innocent 
friends  and  aids.  There  are  but  very  few  venomous 
snakes,  and  the  larger  kinds,  which  are  not  insectivorous, 
destroy  numbers  of  field  rats  and  mice. 

PARASITIC    INSECTS. 

We  are  occasionally  subject  to  the  visitation  of  an  in- 
sect in  vast  numbers;  but  these  generally  bring  with 
them  the  cause  of  their  own  limitation,  or  there  would 
be  no  equilibrium  in  nature.  Swarms  of  parasitic  insects, 
finding  an  increased  food  supply,  follow  in  their  wake, 
and  the  farmer,  aroused  from  his  apathy,  by  finding  his 
entire  crops,  and  not  merely  a  portion  thereof,  endan- 
gered, resorts  to  all  sorts  of  devices  to  save  them.  He 
dusts  and  sprinkles  poisons,  he  digs  circumscribing 
ditches  with  upright  sides  and  pitfalls,  and  applies  the 
torch  and  burning  petroleum. 

Previous  to   1862,   the  European   cabbage    butterfly 


100  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

(Pieris  rapes),  the  parent  of  the  cabbage- worm,  was  un- 
known in  this  country.  It  was  at  that  time  introduced 
into  Canada.  Finding  in  the  cabbage  fields  near  Quebec 
an  abundance  of  food,  and  meeting  no  checks,  it  im- 
proved its  opportunities  and  propagated  its  species  to 
such  an  extent,  as  to  cut  short  the  cabbage  crop  of 
the  vicinity  in  one  season  to  the  extent  of  forty  thousand 
dollars. 

Suddenly  its  own  especial  enemy,  the  little  Chalcid 
fly  (Pteromalus  puparum)  made  its  appearance,  presum- 
ably direct  from  Europe;  and  in  turn,  finding  its  ap- 
propriate food  in  abundance,  propagated  its  species  so 
rapidly,  that,  now  in  sections  where  the  cabbage-worm 
was  most  plentiful,  neither  the  one  nor  the  other  is  often 
seen;  thus  showing  the  beautiful  working  of  checks  and 
counter-checks  in  the  general  plan  of  nature. 

THE   MIGRATION   OF   INSECTS. 

The  number  of  injurious  insects  is  on  the  increase  all 
over  the  world.  The  interchange  between  different 
sections,  different  countries,  and  even  different  hemis- 
pheres, of  noxious  insects,  indigenous  to  each,  is  con- 
stantly occurring,  as  shown  by  the  case  of  the  just-named 
Pieris  rapce.  The  Colorado  potato-beetle  once  gained 
a  foothold  in  Germany;  but  through  the  paternal  care  of 
the  government,  the  large  potato  field,  where  he  was  ob- 
served, was  covered  with  inflammable  material,  and  that 
country  was  promptly  made  too  hot  for  him. 

The  Colorado  potato-beetle  has  marched  eastward  to 
the  coast,  a  curse  and  ravager  of  every  farmer  on  its 
route,  while  the  harlequin-bug  (Strachia  histnomca), 
coming  north  from  its  home  in  Mexico,  will  cross  the 
line  of  the  other,  unless  it  reaches  a  climatic  limit  to  its 
onward  progress.  An  abundance  of  food  has  recruited 
the  ranks  of  noxious  insects,  and  is  still  exerting  the 
same  influence.  Before  the  introduction  of  the  cab- 


INSECTS  AND  1HEIE  REMEDIES.  101 

bage  into  Mexico,  the  insect  just  named  was  probably 
much  more  restricted  in  numbers,  and  changed  its  habit 
from  some  plant  of  the  mustard  family  or  other,  to  the 
more  acceptable  and  delicate  food  of  the  cultivated  cab- 
bage. This  insect  was  found  a  few  years  ago  feeding  on 
Ossabaw  beach  on  a  plant,  I  think,  of  the  family 
Salsoleae. 

In  the  fall  of  1880,  I  found  the  larvae  of  the  little 
Botys  repetitalis  on  cauliflower,  and  a  few  days  afterwards 
my  daughter  found  it,  probably  on  its  native  food  plant 
very  abundantly,  —  the  common  rag- weed  (Ambrosia 
artemesicefolia. )  Of  this  and  other  instances  of  change 
of  habit  coming  under  my  own  observation,  Prof.  Biley 
says  in  one  of  his  reports: 

"Under  the  head  of  new  cabbage  insects  should  be 
included  this  insect,  which  was  first  described  as  Botys 
repetitalis  by  Mr.  Grote,  on  page  270  of  the  last  Annual 
Eeport  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture.  Larvae  of 
this  insect  were  originally  received  from  Dr.  A.  Oemler, 
of  Wilmington  Island,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Savannah 
River,  etc." 

In  a  contribution  to  the  "American  Naturalist,"  under 
the  title  of  "  Change  of  Habit;  Two  New  Enemies  of  the 
Egg  Plant,"  Prof.  Riley  says:  "In  our  writings  on  the 
Colorado  potato-beetle,  we  have  repeatedly  drawn  atten- 
tion to  the  fact  that  Doryphora  juncta,  although  a  native 
of  the  Atlantic  States,  and  living  in  the  midst  of  our  cul- 
tivated species  of  Solanum,  has  yet  never  shown  any  indi- 
cation to  leave  its  natural  food  plant,  the  wild  horse-nettle 
(Solanum  Carolinense)  for  the  cultivated  species  of  the 
genus.  We  have  now  for  the  first  time  to  record  its  appear- 
ance as  an  enemy  to  horticulture,  Dr.  Oemler  having  found 
it — larvae  as  well  as  beetles — feeding  on  his  egg-plants  in 
the  earlier  part  of  June.  There  can  be  no  doubt  about 
the  correctness  of  Dr.  Oemler's  observations,  as  the  speci- 
mens were  sent  to  us  for  determination.  This  is  another 


102  TtUTCMARMiM  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

of  those  instances  of  remarkable  and  sudden  change  in 
the  food-habit  of  a  tolerably  common  and  otherwise  well- 
known  species,  which  led  us  to  the  remarks  on  p.  152  of 
this  volume  anent  '  New  Insects  Injurious  to  Agricul- 
ture.' As  in  other  cases  of  this  sort,  the  causes  of  such 
changes  are  not  readily  ascertained.  In  this  particular 
case,  the  new  habit  may  be  only  temporarily  developed  in 
a  restricted  region,  either  by  the  disappearance  or  the  poor 
condition  of  Solanum  Carolinense;  or  it  may  become  per- 
manent, and  cause  D.  juncta,  hitherto  looked  upon  as 
harmless  or  even  beneficial,  to  vie  with  its  ten-lined  rel- 
ative in  destructiveness.  Time  alone  will  indicate,  as  we 
have  no  grounds  upon  which  to  base  any  confident  pre- 
diction." I  may  mention  that  the  horse-nettle  was 
neither  absent,  nor  in  poor  condition,  and,  that  after 
writing  to  Prof.  Riley,  I  found  the  perfect  insect  on  both 
egg-plant  and  the  former. 

The  same  author  writes:  "Another  case  very  similar  to 
that  just  mentioned,  may  here  be  recorded.  There  is  a 
small  tortoise-beetle  ( Cassida  Texana)  easily  distinguished 
from  its  congeners  by  the  uniformly  pale-green  color  of 
its  upper  surface,  and  the  coarse  striae  of  punctations  on 
the  elytra.  In  1879,  we  found  it  in  all  stages  abundant- 
ly in  Southern  Texas,  feeding  on  the  leaves  of  Solanum 
elcBagnifolium.  Dr.  Oemlernow  writes  (June  13th)  that 
he  finds  eggs,  larvae  and  images  of  this  beetle  quite  com- 
monly depredating  on  his  egg-plants,  though  there  is  no 
previous  record  of  any  such  habit,  and,  indeed,  the  spe- 
cies is  not  recorded  from  the  Atlantic  States,  albeit  we 
have  fo*und  it  this  very  season  at  Washington  on  Solanum 
Carolinense."  Probably  neither  of  these  insects  may 
ever  become  very  destructive  pests;  but  finding  in  our 
cultivated  crops  more  abundant  and  succulent  food  than 
its  former,  wild-growing  and  tougher  food  plant  afforded, 
the  probabilities  are  that  both  will  increase,  and  the  pres- 
ent is  the  proper  time  for  their  destruction. 


IHS1CTS  AtfD  THEIR  REMEDIES.  103 

In  whatever  state  an  insect  species  is  accustomed  to 
exist  through  the  winter,  or  to  hibernate  (and  it  is  done 
in  the  case  of  a  few  in  more  than  one  condition),  no  de- 
gree of  cold  likely  to  occur  will  affect  them;  therefore  the 
popular  idea  that  a  hard  winter  is  destructive  to  insects 
is  a  fallacy;  except  that  such  as  are  turned  up  by  the  plow 
in  very  cold  sunless  weather  may,  in  their  benumbed 
state,  become  an  easier  prey  to  insectivorous  birds. 
There  is  more  truth  in  the  reverse  statement,  that  a  mild 
winter  is  destructive  to  insects. 

The  influence  of  a  certain  degree  of  heat  for  a  sufficient 
time  will  hatch  the  worm  as  well  as  the  chick,  or  bring 
forth  the  butterfly  from  its  chrysalis.  If  a  worm  is  born 
after  a  mild  spell  in  winter,  and  finds  no  food  in  readi- 
ness, it  naturally  must  perish  from  starvation,  and  if  a 
butterfly  appears,  it  must  suffer  from  the  same  cause. 
Either  may  perish  from  cold  it  was  not  expected  to  en- 
counter. Even  in  case  of  survival,  there  would  be  no 
breeding  during  the  uncongenial  weather. 

THE   RAPID   REPRODUCTION   OF  INSECTS. 

The  Creator  in  his  wisdom  has  ordained  that  the 
smaller  animals  and  insects,  which  are  most  subject  to 
predatory  enemies,  shall  be  endowed  with  the  greater 
fecundity.  The  queen  of  the  white-ant  lays  sixty  eggs 
in  a  minute,  eighty  thousand  in  twenty-four  hours,  and. 
forty  million  during  its  existence  of  two  years  in  the 
perfect  state.  Ants,  birds,  reptiles,  beasts,  ever  near, 
make  food  of  them,  when  they  come  forth  in  countless 
numbers  at  the  commencement  of  the  tropical  rainy  sea- 
son; so  that  of  many  millions  scarcely  a  single  pair  es- 
capes to  lay  the  foundation  of  a  new  colony.  A  single 
plant-louse  may,  in  five  generations,  become  the  ancestor 
of  seven  hundred  and  twenty-nine  million  individuals; 
and  there  may  be  twenty  generations  in  a  season.  Dr. 
Fitch  ascertained,  by  actual  experiment,  that  the  fecun- 


104  TRUCK-FARMIHG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

dity  of  the  grain-aphis  was  still  greater.  The  wingless 
females  become  mothers  at  three  days  old,  and  bear  four 
little  ones  every  day,  every  one  of  which  is  a  fertile  fe- 
male from  birth;  so  that  in  twenty  days  the  descendants 
would  exceed  two  millions.  Only  the  next  to  the  last 
brood  of  the  season  consists  of  both  male  and  female, 
when  the  eggs  are  fertilized  for  every  generation  of  the 
ensuing  season  but  the  last,  all  the  other  broods  being 
born  alive.  No  insect  is  more  subject  to  being  preyed 
upon.  In  all  nature  a  contest  is  going  on  for  existence, 
the  weaker  always  succumbing.  This  is  the  struggle  for 
the  "  survival  of  the  fittest,"  as  Darwin  terms  it. 

If  we  sow  our  seeds  too  thick,  we  see  some  of  the  plants 
overtopping  and  smothering  the  rest;  we  see  in  a  growth 
of  young  pine  saplings  that  some  of  the  trees  are  dying 
out,  in  order  that  the  more  vigorous  may  have  more  room. 
In  this  wise  ordinance  of  the  Creator,  that  only  the 
stronger  individuals  shall  propagate  their  own  species, 
He  has  established  a  safeguard  against  deterioration;  and 
it  seems  that  He  has  not  only  endowed  the  stronger  with 
greater  powers  to  resist  deleterious  influences,  but  has 
implanted  in  such  lower  orders  of  beings,  which  are  fre- 
quently the  cause  of  disease  and  death,  an  inclination,  a 
selection,  to  infest  victims  least  able  to  resist  their  in- 
roads. The  sleek,  well-fed  horse  will  not  be  subject  to 
itch;  the  well  cultivated  and  vigorously  growing  orchard 
is  not  apt  to  be  attacked  by  bark- lice. 

The  above  is,  at  least,  the  only  reasonable  explanation 
I  am  able  to  offer  of  the  fact,  often  observed  by  cabbage 
growers,  that  plants  in  luxuriant  growth  are  rarely  at- 
tacked by  leaf -lice,  whereas  a  field  that  is  backward  in 
growth,  and  feeble  in  health,  will  be  overrun  by  them. 
This  is  such  a  general  observation,  that  Gregory  says: 
"  Considering  the  circumstances  under  which  the  insect 
appears,  I  hold  that  it  is  rather  the  product  than  the 
cause  of  disease." 


INSECTS  AND  THEIR  REMEDIES.  105 

THE   CLASSIFICATION   OF   INSECTS. 

This  is  not  a  book  on  entomology,  and  I  shall  avoid, 
as  much  as  possible,  the  description  of  insects  and  the 
use  of  technical  terms,  preferring  to  present  the  most  im- 
portant species  to  the  eye  in  the  form  of  an  illustration. 

For  the  better  understanding  of  future  references,  I 
must,  however,  enumerate  the  orders  into  which  insects 
are  divided,  and  the  transformations  they  undergo. 

ORDERS. 

I. — Hymenoptera. — Example,  bees,  ants,  wasps,  ich- 
neumons. 

II. — Coleoptera. — Shield-winged  insects.  The  beetles. 
Example,  the  fig-eater;  Colorado  potato-beetle. 

III.  — Lepidoptera.  — Butterflies  and  moths.  Example, 
the  cotton-worm  and  tomato-worm  moths. 

IV. — Hemiptera. — The  bugs.  Example,  the  plant- 
louse. 

V. — Diptera.— Two-winged  insects.  Example,  com- 
mon house  fly. 

VI. — Orthoptera. — Straight-winged  insects.  Example, 
the  grass-hopper. 

VI  I.  — Neuroptera.  — Nerve-winged  insects.  Example, 
the  dragon-fly,  or  mosquito -hawk. 

There  are  also  minor  divisions,  but  the  orders  will  an- 
swer our  purpose. 

The  four  stages  of  insect  life  are: 

First. — The  egg,  which  hatches  and  produces: 

Second. — The  larva  (worm,  grub,  maggot,  caterpillar), 
which  goes  into  the  state  of  the: 

Third. — Pupa  or  chrysalis,  often  enclosed  in  a  silken 
cocoon.  Out  of  the  pupa  appears  the: 

Fourth. — Imago,  or  perfect  insect. 

These  changes  of  form  are  truly  wonderful. 


106  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  TH3   SOUTH. 

The  cabbage  insect,  for  instance,  from  being  a  worm, 
crawling  slowly  about  upon  sixteen  short  feet,  and  greed- 
ily devouring,  with  two  strong  jaws,  about  twice  its  own 
weight  of  cabbage  leaf  daily,  and  seeing  out  of  twelve  mi- 
nute, nearly  invisible  eyes,  transforms  itself,  first  into  a 
motionless,  sightless  chrysalis,  and  then  into  a  flitting 
butterfly,  with  six  long,  wholly  dissimilar  legs,  ten  hav- 
ing completely  disappeared.  Instead  of  the  twelve  in- 
visible eyes,  it  is  now  provided  with  two  prominent  ones, 
each  composed  of  about  seventeen  thousand  convex 
lenses,  every  one  supposed  to  be  a  separate  eye.  Instead 
of  the  two  strong  jaws,  we  see  a  long,  flexible  proboscis 
for  the  extraction  of  the  nectar  of  flowers,  now  its  only 
food.  The  shape  of  its  head  is  completely  changed,  and 
from  it  project  two  horns,  which  are  the  organs  of  touch. 

The  insects  that  infest  particular  vegetables  will  be 
mentioned  further  on,  in  treating  of  their  special  food 
plants. 

Of  omnivorous  insects,  or  general  feeders,  those  which 
first  claim  our  attention,  on  account  of  their  general  de- 
structiveness,  are: 

THE   CUT-WORMS. 

These  are  the  larvae  of  S3veral  genera  of  night-flying 
owlet  or  rustic  moths  (Noctutda),  the  genus  Agrotis 
furnishing  the  most  numerous  species,  while  those  of 
Mamestra,  Hadena,  and  Celcena  are  more  rare. 

Prof.  C.  V.  Eiley  has  made  a  special  study  of  cut- 
worms, and  has  described,  in  his  First  Missouri  Report, 
the  habits  of  twelve  distinct  species,  and  subsequently 
of  several  others. 

Ordinarily,  the  moth  attaches  her  eggs  in  early  spring 
and  late  summer  to  vegetation  near  the  ground;  but 
sometimes  the  eggs  are  laid  on  the  leaves  of  trees,  upon 
which  the  worms  do  not  feed,  but  from  which  they  de- 
scend as  soon  as  born.  Soon  after  it  is  hatched,  the  young 


INSECTS  AKD  THEIR  REMEDIES.  10? 

worm  descends  below  the  surface  of  the  soil,  but  comes 
up  nightly  for  food,  cutting  tender  plants.  Retiring 
about  sunrise,  it  sometimes  draws  a  part  of  a  leaf  into  its 
burrow.  Some  distinct  species  ascend  trees  to  cut  the 
buds,  and  are  the  climbing  cut-worms.  They  are  all  most- 
ly dark-colored,  greasy,  smooth-looking  worms,  mottled 
with  white,  bearing  a  general  resemblance  to  one  another, 
and  when  full  grown  are  about  an  inch  and  a  half  in 
length.  They  curl  up,  when  disturbed,  and  are  torpid 
in  the  cold  of  winter;  but  in  our  climate,  with  every 
warm  spell,  they  become  lively,  and  hungry  enough  to 
continue  their  depredations  periodically  throughout  the 


Fig.  8.—  GREASY  CUT-WORM  (Agrotis  telifera,  Hair.).  Fig.  9.— LARVA. 

winter.  They  hibernate  at  the  South  in  both  the  larva 
and  the  pupa  state.  When  full  grown,  the  worm  goes 
deeper  into  the  ground,  and  forms  an  oval  chamber  in 
the  soil,  in  which  it  goes  into  the  pupa  state.  In  the 
warm  weather  of  spring,  the  moth  comes  forth  in  from 
two  to  three  weeks  afterwards.  It  is  generally  of  a  gray 
or  brown  color,  with  slight  differences  of  darker  markings 
and  colorings,  on  the  front  wings,  and  has  a  spread  of 
wings  of  about  an  inch  and  a  half.  When  at  rest,  it  sits 
with  the  wings  folded  against  the  body,  the  lower  being 
covered  and  out  of  sight. 

In  order  to  familiarize  the  eye  with  the  appearance  of 
the  parent  moths,  as  well  as  that  of  the  worms,  engrav- 
ings of  several  of  the  species  are  given. 

The   Greasy  cut-worm  (fig.  8;  larva,  fig.  9),  is  very 


108  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

widely  distributed,  it  being  found  in  nearly  all  parts  of 
the  United  Spates,  and  attacks  many  very  different 
plants,  sometimes  destroying  whole  fields  of  corn  and  of 
tobacco.  The  parent  moth  (fig.  8),  is  known  as  the 
Lance  Rustic  (Agrotis  telifera,  Harr. ),  which  often  enters 


Fig.  10.— MOTH  OF  WESTEBN  STRIPED  CUT-WORM  (Agrotis  subgothica). 

the  house  at  night.     The  general  color  of  the  fore-wings 
is  dark-brown,  and  the  hind-wings  are  pearly- white. 

The  most  common  species  in  Georgia  is  called  the 
Western  Striped  cut- worm  in  the  books,  though  it  is 
quite  as  common  at  the  East  and  South  as  elsewhere.  It 
is  dirty-white  or  ash-gray  in  color,  sometimes  yellowish, 
and  has  dark  stripes  on  the  sides.  The  moth,  known  as 
the  Gothic  Dart  (Agrotis  subgothica,  Harr.),  is  given  in 
fig.  10,  with  the  wings  both  open  and  closed.  The  darker 


Fig.  11. — DARK-SIDED  CUT-WORM  (Agrotis  Cochranii). 

parts  of  the  wings  are  deep-brown,  and  the  lighter  por- 
tions are  of  grayish  flesh-color. 

The  Dark-sided  cut-worm,  of  which  larva  and  moth 
are  given  in  fig.  11,  is  Agrotis  Cochranii,  Riley.     It  is 


INSECTS   AND  THEIE  REMEDIES. 


109 


one  of  the  climbing  species,  and  very  destructive  to  the 
buds  of  fruit  trees. 

The  W-marked  cut-worm  (fig.  12),  is  the  larva  of  the 
Clandestine  owlet-moth  (Noctua  clandestine!,,  Harr.).  It 
attacks  various  vegetables,  and  also  climbs. 

The  Glassy  cut-worm,  the  larva  of  Agrotis  (or  Ha- 


Fig.  12.— W-MARKED  CUT-WORM 

(Noctua  clandestina,  Harr.). 


Fig.  13. — GLASSY  CUT- WORM 

(Agrotis  devastatd). 


dend)  devastate/,  (fig.  13),  is  glassy-green,  with  a  bright 

red  head,  with  a  hard,  dark-brown  shield  just  back  of  it. 

The  small  White,  Bristly  cut-worm  (fig.  14),  Celcena 


Fig.  14.— SMALL  WHITE  BRISTLY  CUT-WORM  (Gdcwui  renigera). 

(or  Hadend)  renigera,  is  very  small,  and  a  general  feeder, 
often  destructive  in  the  flower  garden. 

Entomologists,  in  their  revision  of  these  insects,  have 
made  some  changes  in  the  scientific  names.  Those  here 
given  will  direct  the  reader  to  the  detailed  descriptions 
in  the  entomological  reports  and  other  works. 

As  the  moths  of  the  various  cut- worms  fly  at  night,  and 
are  attracted  by  light,  it  has  been  recommended  to  make 
open  fires  in  the  fields;  and  even  several  fire-traps  have 
been  invented,  into  which  night-flying  moths  have  been 
enticed  and  killed.  These  fires  are  of  very  questionable 
utility,  since  it  may  happen  that  more  beneficial  than 
noxious  insects  may  be  destroyed. 


110  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

REMEDIES   FOR  CUT-WORMS. 

Many  remedies  have  been  recommended  to  kill  or  drive 
away  cut-worms,  such  as  ashes,  salt,  lime,  gas-lime,  cop- 
peras, sulphur,  etc.;  but  I  know  of  none,  harmless  to 
plants,  worth  the  trouble  of  application.  Some  have 
been  deceived  by  the  disappearance  of  the  worm  at  the 
time  it  is  about  to  undergo  its  changes,  ascribing  it  to  the 
effect  of  a  remedy.  Dilute  washes  of  soap,  tobacco,  etc., 
do  not  seem  to  be  repulsive  to  cut-worms.  Pyrethrum, 
the  mere  touch  of  which  is  so  deadly  to  some  insects, 
seems  in  the  open  air  perfectly  innocuous  to  these,  and 
they  soon  recover,  even  after  being  covered  with  it  for 
half  an  hour  or  more  in  close  confinement. 

Covering  the  stems  of  plants  above  and  below  the  sur- 
face of  the  ground  by  a  funnel-shaped  fold  of  paper  or 
tin,  or  surrounding  a  cucumber  or  melon  hill  similarly  with 
a  hoop  of  wood  or  iron,  may  be  a  protection,  but  is  a  pro- 
cess too  troublesome  and  expensive  for  the  truck-farmer. 

Round  holes  made  in  loamy  or  heavy  soil  by  the  inser- 
tion of  a  stick  are  said  to  entrap  these  worms,  which  may 
be  killed  the  next  morning  by  re-inserting  the  stick.  This 
is  one  of  the  few  remedies,  the  utility  of  which  I  cannot 
deny  from  actual  experience,  never  having  cultivated 
land  heavy  enough  to  prevent  the  worm  from  promptly 
burrowing  himself  out  of  the  trap.  On  a  large  field  the 
small  holes,  to  entrap  them,  would  necessarily  be  very 
numerous,  and  the  labor  of  re-inserting  the  stick  into 
each,  whether  empty  or  full,  would  condemn  the  remedy. 

The  instinct  of  the  parent  molh  will  lead  it  to  place 
its  eggs  only  where  the  future  worm  will  find  its  proper 
food;  and  if  a  field  upon  which  the  gardener  expects  to 
put  out  valuable  plants  in  the  spring  is  kept  bare  of  veg- 
etation during  the  months  in  which  the  eggs  are  laid, 
it,. will  be  free  from  cut-worms.  If  plowed  up  later,  and 
then  kept  bare  during  the  winter,  the  worms  will  migrate 


INSECTS   AND   THEIR   REMEDIES.  Ill 

to  better  pastures,  which  may  even  be  provided  for  them 
with  advantage.  But  a  bare  fallow  is  destructive  to 
fertility  in  our  climate,  and  a  thick  mulch  should  be  pro- 
vided, which  when  burnt  off  will  destroy  crickets,  etc. ,  har- 
boring under  it.  I  can  vouch  both  for  this  plan  as  a  mea- 
sure against  cut-worms,  as  well  as  a  means  of  fertility; 
but  it  is  rarely  practicable.  If  in  the  rotation  a  clean 
fall  crop,  not  subject  to  cut-worms,  can  precede  the  one 
to  be  put  out,  th«  latter  will  not  be  apt  to  suffer  from 
them.  A  cut-worm  generally  indicates  its  presence, 
by  a  destroyed  or  injured  plant,  a  cut  leaf,  or  freshly 
stirred  soil,  and,  on  a  small  scale  at  early  morn,  it  may  be 
hunted  at  the  root  of  the  plant  and  killed;  but  never  until 
some  damage  has  already  been  done.  When  the  soil  is 
damp,  the  worm  is  generally  to  be  found  at  early  morn- 
ing near  the  surface.  In  dry  sandy  soil,  and  as  the  day 
advances,  it  burrows  deeper. 

My  method  of  dealing  with  cut-worms,  of  late  years, 
has  been  to  remove  them  from  the  field,  before  the  crop 
to  be  jeopardized  is  up,  or  the  plants  are  put  out. 

By  placing  cabbage  leaves  and  bunches  of  grass  along 
the  rows  of  watermelon  hills  four  years  ago,  I  caught, 
by  hunting  them  daily,  fifteen  hundred  and  thirty-eight 
worms  on  about  one-fourth  of  an  acre,  before  the  seed 
came  up,  and  lost  but  a  single  melon  plant. 

On  one  occasion,  I  captured,  one  morning,  fifty-eight 
of  all  sizes  under  a  single  turnip  leaf,  and  my  son  found 
fifteen  at  the  root  of  a  single  small  cabbage  plant.  But, 
even  when  the  worms  were  as  abundant  as  this  would  indi- 
cate, I  found  the  process  unsatisfactory  and  time-consum- 
ing, and  resorted  to  my  present  effective  plan  of  poisoning 
them. 

After  the  land  is  prepared  for  cabbages,  or  any  other 
crop  needing  protection,  I  place  cabbage  or  turnip  leaves 
in  rows  fifteen  or  twenty  feet  apart  all  over  the  field,  and 
about  the  same  distance  apart  in  the  rows.  The  leaves 


112  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE  SOUTH. 

are  first  dipped  in  a  well-stirred  mixture  of  a  tablespoon- 
ful  of  Paris  green  to  the  bucket  of  water;  or  they  may 
be  first  moistened,  then  dusted  with  a  mixture  of  one 
part  of  Paris  green  to  twenty  of  flour,  and  placed  care- 
fully with  the  dusted  surface  next  to  the  ground.  Two 
such  applications,  particularly  in  cloudy  weather,  at  in- 
tervals of  three  or  four  days,  will  suffice  to  allow  the  cut- 
worms to  make  away  with  themselves,  which  they  gen- 
erally do  with  perfect  success.  This  plan,  of  protect- 
ing the  various  crops,  is  the  best  that  I  have  found. 
Whoever  adopts  it,  will  rid  himself  of  the  pest  at  least 
cost  and  trouble,  and  will  not  be  compelled  to  replant 
constantly,  or  to  sow  his  seed  so  thickly  as  to  provide: 

"  One  for  the  black-bird,  one  for  'he  crow, 
Two  for  the  cut- worm  and  three  to  grow." 

NATURAL  ENEMIES   OF   CUT-WORMS. 

In  the  front  rank  of  all  insectivorous  birds  as  a  destroyer 
of  cut-worms  stands  prominently  the  much  slandered 
crow.  He  is  up  early  enough  to  catch  the  worm,  before 
it  descends;  but,  if  need  be,  he  digs  it  up.  The  good  the 
crow  accomplishes  in  killing  cut- worms,  tomato-worms, 
and  field  mice,  far  outweighs  the  value  of  the  few  grains 
of  corn  he  may  pilfer,  and  he  should  therefore  be  pro- 
tected instead  of  being  persecuted. 

Domestic  poultry  are  also  useful  aids  in  destroying 
cut-worms.  The  common  mole,  it  is  true,  does  consid- 
erable damage  by  burrowing  between  the  roots  of  grow- 
ing crops;  but  he  is  wrongfully  accused  of  feeding  upon 
grain,  and  roots  of  crops,  for  he  is  exclusively  insectiv- 
orous, and  he  probably  devours  numbers  of  cut-worms. 
Fortunately  for  the  mole,  and  for  the  farmer,  too,  at- 
tempts to  poison  it  with  corn  soaked  in  strychnine  are 
based  upon  the  fallacious  belief  that  he  feeds  upon  the 
grain. 

Notwithstanding  the  subterranean  and  nocturnal  habit 


INSECTS   AND  THEIK  REMEDIES.  113 

of  cut-worms  they  have  several  insect  enemies,  which 
attack  them  both  above  and  below  the  surface.  There 
are  four-winged  flies,  belonging  to  the  genus  Microgaster 
which  deposit  their  eggs  in  the  body  of  the  worms;  and 
a  large  yellowish  brown,  four-winged  Ichneumon  fly, 
Paniscus  geminatus,  does  the  same.  Among  the  insects 
that  devour  cut-worms  for  food,  is  the  useful  spined 
soldier-bug,  and  the  larva  and  complete  insect  of  the 
fiery  ground-beetle,  Calosoma  calidum. 

GRASSHOPPERS. 

The  insects  commonly  called  grasshoppers,  belong  to 
two  families  of  Orthoptera.  The  first  and  comparatively 
harmless  (Locustidm)  are  mostly  nocturnal  insects,  gen- 
erally green  in  color,  with  their  legs  four-jointed.  They 
have  long,  tapering  feelers,  and  are  provided  with  a  long 
projecting  instrument  at  the  end  of  the  body  for  deposit- 
ing their  eggs  (ovipositor). 

The  other  family  (Acrididce),  embraces  the  more  de- 
structive "hateful  grasshopper,"  or  Kocky  Mountain 
locust,  the  locusts  of  the  Bible  (Locusta  migratoria), 
and  the  numerous  varieties,  which  are  so  destructive  to 
our  turnips  and  cabbage  seedlings  in  autumn.  (The 
insects,  commonly  called  locusts  in  this  country,  be- 
long to  the  Cicada  family,  and  are  harmless  to  the  crops 
of  the  truck-farmer.)  Thesa  are  more  varied  in  color  than 
the  foregoing,  have  shorter  feelers,  three-jointed  legs, 
and  no  long  egg-laying  instrument.  The  female  insect 
lays  a  large  number  of  eggs  in  the  soil,  late  in  the  fall, 
which  hatch  out  in  the  spring.  The  larvae  are  wingless, 
but  otherwise  bear  a  great  resemblance  to  the  imago  and 
perfect  their  growth  during  the  summer.  To  plants  in 
seed-leaf  they  are  very  destructive;  but  those  more  ad- 
vanced may  outgrow  their  inroads.  To  plants  so  young, 
as  only  to  have  one  or  two  seed-leaves,  or  still  in  the  seed- 
bed, there  can  be  no  reasonable  objections  to  the  applica- 


114  TBITCK-FARMItfG   AT  THE  SOUTH. 

tion  of  poison  for  their  protection^  as  all  the  first  leaves 
will  be  cast  off  long  before  maturity,  and  the  small 
amount  that  might  lodge  on  the  stem  would  be  removed 
by  rain. 

Harris  says  that  grasshoppers  are  attacked  by  certain 
thread-like,  brown,  or  blackish  worms  (Filaria),  and  are 
infested  by  little  red  mites  ( Ocypete),  of  which  ten  or  a 
dozen  may  be  found  adhering  to  the  body  beneath  the 
wings. 

Probably  moles  and  ground  beetles,  and  their  larvae 
may  destroy  the  eggs,. while  the  crow  and  a  few  other 
birds,  and  domestic  poultry,  feed  upon  the  insect. 

Grasshoppers  might  be  captured,  as  in  France  and 
elsewhere,  by  means  of  cloth  traps,  drawn  across  the 
fields,  but  such  methods,  without  concert  of  action 
among  farmers,  are  useless,  and  the  use  of  kerosene  on 
sheet-iron  pans  drawn  over  the  field  as  recommended  in 
the  First  Report  of  the  United  States  Entomological 
Commission  is,  by  all  odds,  the  most  satisfactory. 
.  Grasshoppers  are  not  apt  to  fly  far  from  harboring 
grass  or  weeds;  I  avail  myself  of  this  habit,  and  locate  my 
cabbage-seed  beds  in  the  middle  of  an  open  field,  gen- 
erally undergoing  preparation  at  the  time  for  oats.  If 
the  grain  is  up  simultaneously  with  the  cabbages,  the 
young  blades,  while  affording  food,  will  not  be  sufficiently 
thick  to  furnish  a  harbor  around  the  beds. 

CKICKETS  (A  chetidce. ) 

Unlike  the  tree-cricket  (CEcantlms  niveus)  which  in- 
jures fruit  trees,  the  several  kinds  of  crickets  depredat- 
ing upon  the  crops  of  the  truck-farmer  live  upon  the 
ground,  harboring  under  low  herbage  and  grass.  .  They 
pass  the  winter  at  the  South  in  the  egg  and  in  the  per- 
fect state;  the  female  laying  numerous  eggs  in  the  ground 
at  the  approach  of  winter,  which  hatch  out  in  the  spring. 
They  abound  particularly  near  the  sea  coast,  where,  at 


INSECTS  AND   THE1E  REMEDIES  115 

times,  they  become  very  destructive.  Exclusive  of  cut- 
worms, no  insect  here  was  more  destructive  to  young 
cabbage  plants  in  the  fall  of  1881.  In  March  and  April 
they  gnaw  into  the  "curds  "  of  cauliflower,  making  un- 
sightly blemishes. 

They  emit  their  shrill  sound  by  rubbing  their  wing 
covers  against  each  other.  This  insect,  on  very  young 
plants,  may  be  poisoned  by  an  application  of  Paris  green, 
but  when  it  becomes  dangerous  to  use  the  poison  in  this 
manner,  it  may  be  mixed  with  grated  carrot. 

Crickets  have  the  habit  of  hiding  under  'objects  on  the 
ground,  and  may  be  found  under  boards,  palmetto  leaves, 
etc.,  placed  along  the  rows  of  cabbages  and  other  crops, 
for  the  purpose  of  attracting  them,  but  it  requires  quick- 
ness to  kill  them,  with  a  flat  bat,  as  they  become  very 
lively  as  soon  as  light  is  admitted  to  their  retreat. 

THE  MOLE-CRICKET  (Gryllotalpa.) 

Owing  to  its  exclusively  nocturnal  habit,  this  insect  is 
rarely  seen,  although  it  is  sometimes  destructive  to  seed- 
ling plants,  eating  oif  the  seed  leaves,  for  instance,  of 
melons  and  cucumbers.  There  are  two  species  in  this 
country.  Gryllotalpa  borealis  is  found  in  moist  ground 
in  the  New  England  and  other  Northern  States,  but  is 
much  less  common  than  G.  brevipennis  in  the  Middle 
and  Southern  States.  A  still  different  species,  G.  vul- 
garis,  is  found  in  Europe,  where  it  is  more  abundant 
than  either  of  ours  are  with  us.  It  is  often  quite  trou- 
blesome. I  have  seen  it  successfully  captured  by  sinking 
empty  tumblers,  flower-pots  (closed  at  the  bottom),  etc., 
level  with  the  surface  of  the  soil.  It  may  also  be  pois- 
oned in  the  same  manner  as  the  cricket. 

BIRDS   AS   INSECT   DESTROYERS. 

As  related  to  the  question  of  the  utility  of  insectivor- 
ous birds  and  their  food  supply,  I  cite  the  examinations 


116  TRUCK-FABMISTG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

made  by  Prof.  S.  A.  Forbes,  of  Illinois,  of  the  stomachs  ot 
eighty-six  blue  birds  (Sialia  sialis),  and  his  observations 
and  conclusions.*  Ten  of  the  birds  were  shot  in  Feb- 
ruary, twenty-one  in  March,  thirteen  in  April,  nine  in 
May,  ten  in  June,  nine  in  July,  two  in  September,  and 
twelve  in  December,  in  Southern  Illinois.  The  stomach 
of  a  bird  shot  February  24th,  contained  thirty  per  cent,  of 
cut- worms;  forty  per  cent,  of  crickets;  five  per  cent,  of 
ichneumonidse;  twenty-five  per  cent,  of  the  larvae  of  the 
two-lined  soldier-beetle.  After  enumerating  the  contents 
of  the  stomachs  of  all  the  birds,  Prof.  Forbes  summarizes : 
"  What  now  shall  we  say  of  the  economic  relations  of 
this  bird?  According  to  the  estimate  of  Mr.  Walsh  that 
(reasoning  from  the  comparative  numbers  of  injurious 
and  beneficial  insects,  a  bird  must  be  shown  to  eat  at 
least  thirty  times  as  many  injurious  individuals  as  bene- 
ficial ones,  before  it  can  be  considered  useful),  the  blue 
bird  does  at  least  twenty  times  as  much  harm  as  good, — 
that  is  to  say,  the  beneficial  insects  destroyed  would 
themselves  have  made  away  with  twenty  times  as  many 
injurious  insects  as  the  birds  themselves  have  eaten. 
Admitting  that  Mr.  Walsh's  estimate  was  exaggerated,  it 
surely  was  not  twenty  times  too  large,  and  even  if  it 
were,  we  could  merely  look  upon  the  blue  bird  as  harm- 
less, indeed,  but  as  useless  also.  And  yet,  in  the  face  of 
this,  I  venture  to  doubt  that  a  case  has  yet  been  made  out. 
"  In  the  first  place,  nothing  has  been  learned  of  the  food 
of  the  young,  and  there  is  some  reason  for  supposing 
that  birds  select  for  their  young,  the  softer  kinds  of  in- 
sects. This  supposition,  founded  chiefly  upon  the  state- 
ments of  M.  Florent-Prevost,  of  Paris,  is  contradicted, 
it  is  true,  by  observations  of  the  food  of  the  young  mock- 
ing-bird, and  whatever  deficiency  of  credit  may  be  due 
to  this  neglect  of  the  food  of  the  young,  is  compensated 

*  From  tlie  "  American  Entomologist,"  1880, 


IHSECTS  AND  THEIR  REMEDIES.  117 

in  part,  at  least,  by  the  fact,  that  the  number  of  cater- 
pillars eaten  is  doubtless  overestimated,  in  comparison 
with  hard  insects,  as  their  flexible  skins  remain  in  the 
gtomachs  of  birds  longer  than  the  hard  structures  of  in- 
sects. This  is  exactly  contrary  to  the  usual  supposition, 
but  the  frequent  occurrence  of  numbers  of  the  emptied 
and  twisted  skins  of  cut-worms  in  the  stomach,  still  rec- 
ognizable as  Noctuidw,  when  not  even  a  fragment  of  a 
jingle  head  remains,  is  sufficient  evidence  that  the  hard 
parts  break  up  and  disappear  before  these  delicate  but 
yielding  skins.  Secondly,  while  our  knowledge  of  the 
tfood  of  arctians,  cut-worms,  and  grasshoppers,  is  suf- 
ficiently definite  and  full  to  enable  us  to  predict  with  cer- 
tainty exactly  what  would  happen,  if  those  eaten  by  the 
blue  birds  were  allowed  to  live  and  multiply,  we  have  not 
the  same  complete  and  certain  knowledge  of  the  food  and 
habits  of  the  different  genera  of  ichneumonidae,  the 
ground-beetles,  the  soldier-bugs  and  soldier-beetles.  One 
hundred  blue  birds,  at  thirty  insects  each  a  day,  would 
eat  in  six  months  about  half  a  million  insects.  If  this 
number  of  birds  were  destroyed,  the  result  would  be  the 
preservation  of  about  one  hundred  and  seventy  thousand 
caterpillars  (ninety  thousand  of  them  cut-worms),  twenty 
thousand  leaf-chafers,  ten  thousand  curculios,  and  eighty- 
five  thousand  crickets,  locusts,  and  grasshoppers. 

"How  this  horde  of  marauders  would  busy  itself,  if 
left  undisturbed,  no  one  can  doubt.  It  would  eat  grass 
and  clover,  and  corn  and  cabbages,  inflicting  an  immense 
injury  itself,  and  leaving  a  progeny  which  would  multi- 
ply that  injury  indefinitely.  On  the  other  hand,  would 
the  two  hundred  thousand  predaceous  beetles  and  bugs, 
spiders  and  ichneumons,  either  prevent  or  counterbal- 
ance these  injuries?  I  do  not  believe  that  we  can  say 
positively  whether  they  would  or  not.  In  a  discussion 
of  the  natural  checks  upon  the  cut-worm,  Prof.  Kiley,  in 
his  First  Report  as  State  Entomologist  of  Missouri,  men- 


118  TRUCK-FABMIKO  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

tions  two  species  of  ichneumon  that  parasitize  the  larva, 
credits  the  spined  soldier-bug  and  the  carabid  larva, 
Calosoma  calidum,  with  its  destruction,  and  says  that 
some  kinds  of  spiders  are  known  to  prey  upon  it.  From 
the  Eeport  of  the  United  States  Entomological  Commis- 
sion, for  1877,  we  learn  that  the  grasshopper  is  preyed 
upon,  at  one  or  the  other  stage,  by  Agonoderus,  Harpa- 
lus,  Amara,  and  other  carabids;  by  soldier-beetles,  sol- 
dier-bugs, and  spiders,  and  that  certain  ichneumonidae 
parasitize  the  eggs.  It  seems  probable,  therefore,  that 
the  beneficial  insects  eaten  by  blue  birds  include  the  spe- 
cial enemies  of  the  cut-worms  and  grasshoppers  it  de- 
stroys, but  he  who  knows  best  the  small  number  of  re- 
liable observations  upon  which  our  general  statements  of 
the  food  of  predaceous  insects  rest,  will  have  the  most 
hesitation  in  trusting  them  without  reserve.  The  proba- 
bilities seem  to  be  against  the  blue  bird,  but  the  certain- 
ties are,  as  yet,  in  its  favor.  Finally,  I  would  call  atten- 
tion to  the  fact  that  we  do  not  know  that  the  normal 
rate  of  increase  among  these  carnivorous  and  parasitic 
insects  is  not  sufficient  to  keep  their  numbers  full  to  the 
limit  of  their  food  supply,  and  to  furnish  also  a  surplus 
for  destruction  by  birds.  Just  as  a  tree  puts  forth  more 
leaves  than  it  needs,  and  sets  more  fruit  than  it  can  pos- 
sibly mature;  as  an  offset  to  the  constant  normal  depre- 
dations of  insects,  so  there  is  much  reason  to  suppose 
that  our  insect  friends  have  become  adjusted  to  this 
steady  drain  on  their  numbers.  There  are  many  consid- 
erations involved  here  into  which  I  can  not  at  present 
enter.  It  will  suffice  to  say  that  all  the  evidence  we  have 
of  the  increase  and  decrease  of  carnivorous  insects,  at- 
tendant upon  the  increase  and  decrease  of  the  insects 
upon  which  they  feed,  tends  to  show  that  the  real  limit 
to  their  multiplication  is  not  destruction  by  birds,  but  a 
deficient  food  supply,  and  that  in  relieving  them  from 
their  feathered  enemies,  we  should  only  be  giving  a  por- 


ASPARAGUS. 


119 


iion  of  them  the  poor  privilege  of  starving  to  death,  in- 
stead of  being  eaten  up.  Considering,  therefore,  the 
certainty  of  the  evil  consequences  of  the  destruction  of 
the  blue  bird,  and  the  uncertainty  of  the  possible  good, 
I  believe  that,  notwithstanding  the  apparent  balance 
against  the  species,  even  the  most  radical  economist,  the 
most  indifferent  to  the  beauty  and  pleasure  of  the  nat- 
ural world,  would  have  no  present  justification  for  throt- 
tling the  song  of  the  blue  bird  in  his  garden,  with  the 
hope  of  increasing  thereby  his  annual  store  of  hay  and 
cabbage." 

The  following  table  gives  the  percentages  of  the  three 
classes  of  insects  destroyed,  and  the  average  for  the 
season : 


PERCENTAGES    FOB 

f 

, 

*3 

EACH    MONTH. 

c 

J 

•§ 

^a. 

I 

I 

e 

| 

t' 

1 

Is 

5 

3 

-t 

5 

^ 

p 

^Q 

Beneficial  

46 

28 

21 

35 

38 

14 

11 

28 

41 

60 

23 

55 

26 

67 

02 

S9 

Neutral  

13 

11 

56 

10 

34 

19 

87 

33 

CHAPTER    XII. 


ASPARAGUS.— (Asparagus  offidnalis.) 

Atperge,    French ;    Spargel,    German ;    Aspergie,    Dutch ;    Asperago   or 
Italian ;  and  Esperrayo,  Spanish. 


Asparagus  is  a  native  of  the  sea  coasts  of  Europe,  and 
has  long  been  in  cultivation  as  one  of  the  choicest  vege- 
tables of  the  garden.  Peter  Henderson  says  of  this  vege- 
table, that  the  supply  has  never  yet  fully  satisfied  tire 
demand,  and  that  a  small  quantity  of  good  asparagus  has 


120  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

frequently  helped  to  sell  a  wagon  load  of  vegetables,  the 
gardener  making  its  sale  conditional  upon  the  purchase 
of  other  articles.  Asparagus  is  not  only  a  wholesome 
article  of  food,  but  it  is  a  pleasant  diuretic  and  aperient, 
and  is  often  used  as  an  alterative  or  "purifier  of  the 
blood."  When  prescribed  medicinally  it  is,  as  a  decoc- 
tion, made  by  boiling  two  ounces  of  the  root  in  one  quart 
of  water.  There  are  some  sixty  or  seventy  species  of  as- 
paragus, of  which  the  above  named  is  the  only  edible 
one.  While  the  shoots  of  the  majority  of  the  asparagus 
plants  are  green,  some  plants  produce  purple-topped 
shoots,  owing  probably  to  some  modification  of  the  leaf- 
green,  or  chlorophyll.  Such  plants  cannot  be  considered 
even  as  varieties,  as  they  occur  in  every  planting  of 
whatever  kind  of  asparagus  seed,  and  the  peculiarity  is 
not  transmitted  as  a  regular  distinctive  feature. 

Difference  of  opinion  exists  among  horticulturists  in 
regard  to  the  question  of  varieties  of  this  vegetable,  some 
contending  there  are  no  varieties  of  Asparagus  officinalis. 
They  claim  that  growers,  in  several  localities,  have 
brought  the  cultivation  of  asparagus  to  such  a  state  of 
perfection,  as  to  have  developed  a  decided  superiority  in 
the  plant;  that,  as  like  produces  like,  the  seed  of  such 
plants  are  preferable  and  will  continue  to  give  a  superior 
product.  They  hold  that,  until  deteriorated,  the  Con- 
over's  Colossal,  the  Ulm,  the  Argenteuil,  and  others,  are 
only  improved  strains,  while  others  claim  them  to  be  dis- 
tinct varieties.  Unlike  the  varieties  of  other  vegetables, 
the  different  sorts  of  asparagus  are  distinguished  neither 
by  shape,  nor  color  of  leaf  or  flower,  nor  by  taste,  nor 
by  any  other  character,  save  size,  and  when  removed  from 
favorable  conditions  of  climate,  soil,  manure,  and  man- 
agement, they  deteriorate  and  are  undistinguishable 
from  plants  grown  from  seeds  of  the  poorest  kind.  As- 
paragus is  a  dioecious  plant,  that  is,  the  male  (staminate) 
and  female  (pistillate)  flowers  are  on  separate  roots. 


ASPAKAGUS.  121 

Only  the  latter  bear  seeds  which  will  not  be  fertile  un- 
less the  flower  is  impregnated  by  the  pollen  of  the  for- 
mer. Thus  it  requires  two  distinct  plants  for  the  propa- 
gation of  the  species.  Should  a  variety  originate  by 
chance,  its  flower  would  require  the  pollen  of  the  previous 
variety  to  fertilize  it;  and  to  transmit  its  distinctive  fea- 
tures to  descendants,  it  must  be  ever  afterwards  exempt 
from  any  altering  influences  of  the  pollen.  If  such  breed- 
ing of  varieties  was  probable  in  dioecious  plants,  the 
chances  of  cross-fertilization  are  such  that  varieties  and 
sub- varieties  would  be  constantly  seen. 

RAISING  THE  PLANTS. 

Asparagus  is  propagated  from  seed,  the  usual  practice 
being  to  raise  the  plants  in  a  seed-bed,  and  trans- 
fer them  to  the  field  when  one  or  two  years  old,  those  of 
one  year  being  much  the  best.  It  has  generally  been,  at 
the  South,  not  only  the  uneconomical,  but  from  an  horti- 
cultural point  of  view,  the  objectionable  custom  to  pur- 
chase the  plants  from  Northern  nurseries,  at  from  four  dol- 
lars to  eight  dollars  per  thousand,  without  any  knowledge 
of  their  previous  cultivation,  age,  or  condition.  This  has 
been  done  when  the  plants  could  be  grown  much  cheaper, 
and  much  better  at  home,  with  the  additional  advantage  of 
being  able  to  lift  them  carefully  and  fresh  from  the  seed- 
bed when  needed;  whereas,  procured  from  a  distance,  they 
are  stale,  roughly  handled  and  bruised.  The  price  of  the 
seed  is  usually  about  fifty  cents  per  pound,  containing 
some  fourteen  thousand  seeds,  which  should  supply  at 
least  ten  thousand  five  hundred  plants,  or  enough  for 
three  acres.  At  the  average  price  of  plants,  as  offered 
by  the  largest  seed  firms,  the  same  number  of  plants 
would  cost  twenty-one  dollars.  Small,  spindling  shoots 
are  comparatively  worthless.  The  asparagus  grower 
should  start  his  seed-bed  with  the  ultimate  object  of  pro- 
ducing large,  stout  sprouts,  (or  "  grass,"  in  the  language 
6 


122  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

of  the  market),  and  to  do  this  he  must  avoid  stunted 
plants.  A  good  asparagus  plantation  is  expensive.  It 
brings  in  no  return  for  three  years,  but  when  it  once 
comes  into  bearing,  it  remains  productive  for  twenty 
years  or  more,  and  affords  good  profits.  Unless  it  can 
be  properly  made  from  the  start,  it  had  better  not  be 
undertaken. 

The  seed  of  asparagus  is  not  injured  by  frost.  It  may 
be  sown  from  December  1st  to  the  middle  of  March.  Se- 
lect high,  sandy  or  well-drained,  light  land,  which  has 
been  well  manured;  sow  in  drills  two  feet  apart,  and  one 
inch  deep;  the  plants  should  stand  about  three  inches 
apart  in  the  row.  At  these  distances,  one-fourth  of  an 
acre  will  grow  twenty-one  thousand  seven  hundred  and 
eighty  plants,  or  a  sufficient  number  to  plant  five  or  six 
acres.  If  proper  care  is  taken  of  them  during  their 
growth,  the  plants  will  be  superior  to  any  of  one  year's 
growth,  purchasable  at  any  price  from  any  Northern  nurs- 
ery, simply  in  consequence  of  our  longer  and  warmer 
growing  season.  In  addition  to  this,  are  the  advan- 
tages of  being  able  in  transplanting  to  return  them  to  the 
soil,  fresh  and  without  injury  to  the  roots. 

THE  SOIL  AND   ITS   PREPARATION. 

One  of  the  chief  claims'  of  asparagus  to  popular  favor 
is  its  early  appearance  in  the  spring;  and  hence,  a  heavy 
cold  clay,  particularly  if  badly  drained,  should  be  avoided. 
A  light,  high,  warm,  sandy  soil,  heavily  fertilized,  is 
best  adapted  to  this  crop,  and  it  especially  flourishes 
when  such  soil  is  located  near  its  native  habitat — the  sea 
coast.  The  more  manure,  the  better  the  cultivation,  the 
larger  and  better  will  be  the  "  grass;"  therefore  the  land 
should  be  in  fine,  mellow  condition  before  the  application 
of  the  manure.  After  deep  plowing,  subsoiling,  and  har- 
rowing, a  coating  of  about  a  hundred  wagon  loads  of 
green  stable  manure  to  the  acre,  without  much  long  litter, 


ASPARAGUS.  193 

should  be  turned  under  as  deeply  as  possible.  Future 
surface  manurings  will  benefit  the  top  soil.  The  field 
being  thoroughly  harrowed,  straight  rows  should  be  laid 
off  with  a  two-horse  plow,  going  only  in  one  direction, 
care  being  taken  to  have  the  straight  cuts,  or  land-sides 
of  the  furrows,  equi-distant  from  each  other,  and  five  feet 
apart.  If  the  roots  of  the  plants  are  long,  it  will  prob- 
ably be  necessary  to  deepen  the  furrows  by  following  the 
first  with  a  smaller  plow.  In  the  bottom  of  the  furrow 
it  is  well  to  apply  some  lasting  fertilizer,  as  coarse 


15. — ASPARAGUS  PLANT. 


ground  bone,  at  the  rate  of  half  a  ton  to  the  acre.  If 
the  land  is  high  and  warm,  the  crowns  of  the  plants 
might  eventually  be  about  six  inches  below  the  surface; 
but  in  colder  ground  it  would  be  unsafe  to  place  them 
deeper  than  four  inches,  or  the  sprouts  might  be  late  in 
the  spring,  and  a  part  of  the  plants  might  perish.  The 
roots  are  round  and  succulent,  with  numerous  small 
fibres,  which  unite  to  form  the  crown,  from  which  the 


124  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

sprouts  appear.  The  crown  grows  laterally,  the  base  of 
every  succeeding  bud,  during  the  life  of  the  plant,  re- 
maining at  about  the  same  depth.  This  lateral  manner 
of  growth,  and  the  position  of  the  buds,  are  shown  in 
fig.  15.  The  deeper  the  plant  can  be  placed,  due  regard 
being  had  to  the  requisites  of  an  early  and  profitable 
growth,  the  better,  as  the  crowns  will  be  less  liable  to 
injury  at  the  hands  and  knives  of  careless  cutters  of 
the  crop.  The  old  method  of  close  planting  of  aspara- 
gus upon  trenched  ground,  with  a  subterranean  layer, 
three  feet  deep,  of  oyster  shells,  or  brickbats,  for  drain- 
age, and  with  the  idea  of  preventing  the  too  deep  growth 
of  the  roots,  has  been  abandoned.  One  might  as  well  ex- 
pect to  see  stalks  of  corn  grow  thirteen  feet  high,  and 
thick  in  proportion,  when  the  grain  is  sown  broadcast  for 
fodder,  as  to  look  for  good  "  grass  "  from  the  old  man- 
ner of  planting. 

An  old  asparagus  plant  makes  an  enormous  growth  of 
root,  both  as  regards  its  mass  and  length,  and  wide 
planting  admits  of  these  roots  securing  a  sufficiency  of 
food,  and  of  their  making  a  vigorous  growth  without 
crowding. 

SETTING   OUT  THE   PLANTS. 

The  plants  should  be  carefully  lifted  from  the  seed 
bed  with  a  digging  fork,  without  bruising  the  roots. 
These,  if  very  long  and  irregular  in  length,  may  be 
shortened  back  a  little. 

The  distances  in  the  row  being  marked  off  at  from  two 
to  two  and  a  half  feet,  or  even  three  feet,  a  plant  is 
dropped  at  each  place,  and  the  planter,  following,  holds 
the  plant  at  the  proper  depth,  say  six  inches,  against 
the  land  side,  or  cut,  with  the  roots  spread  out  from  the 
crown  in  a  fan-shaped  manner,  and,  with  a  single  sweep 
of  the  left  hand,  fixes  it  in  position  with  loose  soil  from 
the  top  of  the  furrow.  The  subsequent  filling  in  may  be 


ASPARAGUS.  125 

done  with  the  plow;  but  the  hoe  is  to  he  preferred,  as 
the  depth  can  he  more  exactly  adjusted,  and  there  is  less 
danger  of  an  accidental  disturbance  of  the  plant.  For 
safety,  until  growth  commences,  the  crowns  should  not 
be  covered  the  entire  depth,  but  only  two  or  three  inches; 
when  the  shoots  have  grown  several  inches  high,  the  cov- 
ering may  be  completed,  and  this  will  serve  as  a  working 
of  the  ground,  and  destroy  weeds. 

CULTIVATION. 

Its  vigorous  growth  enabling  it  to  overtop  grass,  and  to 
hold  its  own  against  weeds,  asparagus  will  withstand 
as  much  neglect  as  any  other  vegetable;  but  it  will 
respond  to  generous  treatment.  The  expense  of  its 
first  planting,  and  its  care,  until  it  commences  to 
make  a  return  two  or  three  years  later,  are  too  great  to 
admit  of  neglect.  If  the  plantation  has  been  properly 
made  and  properly  tended,  its  rank  and  luxuriant  growth 
will  meet  across  the  five-feet  rows  in  the  third  year  and 
smother  most  weeds  during  the  summer.  The  crop 
should  be  cultivated  and  hoed  as  often  as  necessary  to 
subdue  grass  and  weeds.  Asparagus  produces  seed  the 
second  year.  As  soon,  therefore,  as  the  ctalks  commence 
to  die  in  the  fall,  they  should  be  chopped  down  and 
burned,  to  prevent,  so  far  as  possible,  the  growth  of 
young  seedlings  among  the  crop,  which  are  not  readily 
eradicated,  and  are  really  weeds. 

It  is  useless  to  apply  manure  when  the  plant  is  at 
rest  in  the  fall  and  winter,  but  just  prior  to  the  commence- 
ment of  growth,  make  an  application  of  half  a  ton  to  the 
acre  of  Peruvian  guano,  bone-flour,  or  ground  fish  guano, 
mixed  with  muck,  woods-earth,  or  garden  soil,  and  thor- 
oughly harrow  it  in.  If  stable  manure  is  used,  it  should 
remain  upon  the  surface.  The  material  being  at  hand, 
a  mulch  thick  enough  and  close  enough  to  prevent  the 
growth  of  weeds  and  grass,  to  be  burned  off  before  the 


126  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

winter  top-dressing  is  to  be  applied,  would  obviate  the 
necessity  of  frequent  working,  and  of  chopping,  or  mow- 
ing down  the  bushes,  and  would  destroy  all  the  seed, 
without  causing  any  injury  to  the  deeply  buried  roots. 
Subsequent  cultivation  consists  in  keeping  down  weeds 
by  stirring  the  soil  with  cultivator  and  hoes,  and  in  the 
annual  installment  of  fertilizers,  alternating  each  year 
with  a  different  kind. 

The  natural  habitat  of  asparagus  being  the  sea  coast, 
it  is  benefited  by  applications  of  common  salt,  which 
may  be  used  with  advantage  in  sufficient  quantity  to  de- 
stroy weeds,  say  from  six  hundred  to  eight  hundred 
pounds  to  the  acre,  particularly  if  the  crop  is  at  a 
distance  from  the  sea  shore.  The  burning  of  a  mulch 
of  marsh  sedge  would  supply  the  crop  with  other  salts  of 
sea  water  besides  common  salt.  If  the  shoots  are  nu- 
merous and  strong,  a  few  may  be  cut  the  third  year,  but 
it  is  better  to  dofer  cutting  any  until  the  fourth  season 
from  the  seed. 

CUTTING   AND   MARKETING. 

Asparagus  knives  of  various  shapes  are  made  expressly 
for  the  purpose.  The  blade  should  be  passed  down  along 
the  shoot  to  the  necessary  depth,  when  by  a  turn  of  the 
handle  the  shoot  is  severed,  and  can  be  lifted  out. 

Only  the  part  of  the  shoot  made  green  by  exposure 
to  light  is  eaten,  the  white  blanched  portion  being  tough 
and  stringy.  Yet  fashion,  and,  therefore,  the  trade,  de- 
mand that  at  least  a  part  of  the  sprouts  be  white,  other- 
wise it  would  not  bo  necessary  to  place  the  crowns  so 
deeply  in  the  ground.  A  change  in  this  respect  is  tak- 
ing place,  however,  and  a  modification  in  the  mode  of 
planting  may  soon  be  advisable. 

Asparagus  should  not  be  cut  until  the  shoots  are  four 
or  five,  or  even  six  inches  above  the  ground,  so  that  they 
may  be  at  least  eight  inches  long,  that  being  the  usuaj 


ASPARAGUS. 


127 


Fig.  16.— ASPARAGUS  BUNCHER. 
(Old.) 


length  of  the  bunches.     A  plantation  in  full  bearing  and 

vigorous   growth  may  require   to  be  cut  daily,  but  it 

should  not  be  continued  beyond  about  four  weeks,  for 

fear  of  weakening  the  plants. 

The  bunches,  to  command  the  highest  market  price, 

should    be    four    inches    in 

diameter,    eight     inches    in 

length,  and  about  two  and  a 

half  pounds  in  weight,  and 

should  not  only  consist  of 

good  assorted  "grass,"  but 

be    evenly    and    compactly 

made.     To  attain   these   re- 

quisites, without  too  much 

loss  of  time,   a   buncher,    of  which    there    are    many 

patterns,  is  indispensable.     It  holds  the  proper  number 

of  sprouts  to  form  the 
four-inch  bunch,  firm- 
ly in  position  for  one 
tie  to  be  made  below 
the  buds  and  another 
near  the  base,  when 
the  lower  ends  may  be 
evenly  cut  off  with  a 
sharp  knife.  The  sim- 
plest form  of  buncher 
is  shown  in  fig.  16.  It 
consists  of  a  board  with 
four  pins  about  six 
inches  long,  placed  four 
inches  apart,  and  form- 
ing a  square.  This  is 


Fig.  IT.- 


.  (Modern.) 


in  order  to  make  the  ends  of  the  shoots  even,  or  it  may 
be  provided  with  a  back,  as  in  fig.  16.  The  ties  are  laid 
down,  anci  the  shoots  stacked  up  between  the  pins.  A 


128  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE  SOUTH. 

more  recent  form  of  buncher  is  given  in  fig.  17.  In  thia 
the  shoots  are  placed  between  two  strips  of  brass,  and 
the  upper,  hinged  portion  brought  down,  which  firmly 
holds  the  bunch  in  proper  shape  until  it  can  be  tied. 

Twine  and  small  willow  twigs  are  sometimes  used  foi 
ties,  but  Cuba  Bast  is  the  best  material,  and  gives  the 
bunches  a  very  neat  appearance.  This  is  the  inner  bark 
of  Paritium  elatum,  a  large  tree  of  the  Mallow  family. 
It  is  in  large  sheets,  and  sells,  wholesale,  at  about  $1.00 
per  pound.  A  recently  introduced  material,  called  Raf- 
fia, the  outer  skin  or  cuticle  of  the  leaf  of  a  palm,  is 
very  soft  and  strong,  and  may  be  used  for  the  purpose. 
Either  kind  should  be  cut  of  the  proper  length  and  laid 
in  water;  this  renders  the  material  flexible,  and  allows 
the  ties  to  be  made  more  readily. 

Asparagus  is  sold  by  the  bunch,  that  from  the  South 
bringing  generally,  in  New  York,  from  nine  dollars  to 
twelve  dollars  per  dozen,  and  it  may  be  packed  in  other 
than  the  usual  bushel  crate,  although  a  uniformity  of 
package  is  desirable.  The  bunches  should  all  stand  up- 
right, and  if  in  more  than  one  layer,  the  buds  on  top 
of  the  shoots  in  the  lower  one  should  be  protected  from 
being  bruised  by  the  stems  of  the  layer  above  by  some 
soft  intervening  material,  like  moss.  The  first  cost  of 
making  a  planting  of  asparagus  with  home-grown  plants, 
as  above,  is  about  one  hundred  dollars  per  acre. 

SAVING   SEED. 

Asparagus  is  one  of  the  vegetables  of  which  Southern- 
grown  seed  is  as  good  as  any.  To  save  the  seed,  the  ripe, 
red  berries  should  be  stripped  off  by  hand,  or  the  bushes 
cut  down,  and  the  berries  threshed  off.  They  are  then 
placed  in  a  vessel  or  barrel,  and  pounded  with  a  wooden 
pestle  to  break  the  outer  shells,  which  may  be  separated 
from  the  seed  by  washing,  when  the  latter  are  dried  in 
the  sun  and  stored  away. 


ASPARAGUS. 
INSECTS. 

Asparagus  is   subject  to   injury  from  the  following 

insects : 

First — The  asparagus-beetle  (Crioceris  asparagi.) 
Second — The  zebra-caterpillar  (Mamestra  picta.) 
Third — The  smeared-dagger  (Acronycta  oUinita.)  A 

small  ash-gray  moth,  the  caterpillar  of  which  sometimes 

feeds  upon  the  plant. 

The  asparagus-beetle  was   introduced    from    Europe 

about  1860.     In  a  few  years  it  became  so  numerous  and 

terribly   destructive,  that,  in   1862,  some   farmers   on 


Fig.  18.— ASPARAGUS  BEETLE  (Criocens  asparagi'). 
Beetle,  Larva,  Egg.    The  lines  show  the  natural  length  of  Egg  and  Beetle. 

Long  Island  plowed  up  their  asparagus  plantations, 
the  crops  having  been  ruined.  All  remedies  failed, 
and  it  was  thought  the  cultivation  of  asparagus  would 
have  to  be  abandoned  on  the  Island,  where  the  best  in  the 
country  is  grown.  But  in  1863,  there  appeared  a  deliverer 
in  the  form  of  a  little  black  shining  chalcid  fly,  which 
very  soon  checked  the  increase  of  the  insects.  The  larvse 
eat  off  the  bark  of  the  stalks,  preferring,  and  commenc- 
ing with,  the  tender  shoots.  The  beetle  has  two  broods 
in  the  season,  and  winters  in  the  perfect  state.  I  have 
never  seen  this  insect  at  the  South,  but  if  it  has  not  yet 
reached  us,  the  probabilities  are  that  it  will  do  so  in  time. 
The  other  insects  named  commit  no  serious  injury. 


130  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


BEAN— BUSH   OR  SNAP.— (Phaseolus  vulgaris.) 

Haricot,  French  ;  SchminJcbohne,  German  ;  Heere  Boon,  Dutch  ;  Fagiorilo^ 
Italian-.  Fasoles,  Spanish. 

The  Bean  is  a  tender 'animal,  a  native  of  India,  and 
was  introduced  into  England  about  1590. 

Owing  to  the  ease  with  which  it  can  be  grown,  the 
short  period  between  seed-time  and  harvest  (about  six 
weeks),  and  its  extensive  consumption  at  the  North,  the 
bean  is  one  of  the  principal  vegetables  grown  by  the 
truck-farmer.  Its  cultivation  is  most  profitable  where 
labor  is  plentiful  for  picking  the  crop,  as  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  cities. 

VARIETIES. 

There  are  two  distinct  forms,'  the  Pole  or  Climbing 
Bean,  and  the  Dwarf.  The  latter,  Phaseolus  vulgaris, 
is  a  low  bush  and  produces  its  pods  during  a  shorter  time 
than  the  other.  The  Dwarf  beans  are  a  little  more 
hardy,  and  the  pods  are  smaller,  but 'of  better  flavor  and 
greater  delicacy.  As  the  running  kinds  require  poles, 
the  "  Bush,"  in  consequence  of  readier  cultivation,  is  the 
bean  of  the  market-gardener. 

The  varieties  of  Bush-beans  are  numerous.  The  flat- 
podded  "  Early  Mohawk,"  is  the  earliest,  and  hardiest. 
It  sells  well,  until  the  later,  more  tender  and  less  stringy 
round  beans  come  in,  and  command  a  higher  price. 

The  "Valentine  "  is  now  the  most  popular  round  bean, 
it  having  superseded  the  "  Eefugee  "  or  "  1000  to  1,"  and 
the  "  Cleveland  Extra  Early  "  is  considered  the  earliest  of 
them,coming  in  about  one  week  later  than  the  ''Mohawk." 
The  several  varieties  of  German  "  Wax-beans"  are  very 


BEAN — BUSH   OB  SNAP.  131 

fine,  and,  when  in  good  order,  sell  well ;  but  they  become 
spotted  more  readily,  and  are  not  so  extensively  planted 
as  the  others.  The  time  for  sowing  may  be,  approxi- 
mately, for  the  vicinity  of  Savannah,  from  the  first  to 
the  middle  of  March,  later  to  the  northward,  and  earlier 
to  the  southward ;  in  the  middle  of  Florida,  it  may  be 
safely  planted  as  early  as  January  10th,  and  still  further 
south,  at  any  time  in  the  winter.  In  1881  the  first  beans 
from  Florida  came  into  the  Savannah  market  on  Decem- 
ber 22d.  Formerly  vegetables  regarded  as  out  of  season, 
could  find  no  sale  in  the  Northern  markets,  but  now 
beans  in  limited  quantities,  bring  fair  prices  in  March. 

SOIL. 

The  lightest  land  of  the  farm  may  be  appropriated  to 
the  bean  crop;  but  a  sandy  loam  suits  it  best.  Like 
other  leguminous  plants,  it  will  grow  fairly  upon  good 
soil  without  recent  fertilization ;  though,  like  other  mar- 
ket vegetables,  it  should  be  manured,  and  green,  or 
fresh  stable  manure  is  considered  most  beneficial.  The 
land  being  properly  plowed  and  harrowed,  straight  fur- 
rows, if  the  land  is  level,  are  laid  off,  thirty  inches  apart. 
The  manure  is  drilled  from  the  tail  of  a  cart,  or  with  a 
manure  distributor,  at  the  rate  of  thirty  wagon  loads  to 
the  acre,  then  covered  by  the  plow.  The  resulting  ridge 
beds  are  leveled  by  means  of  a  board  attached  to  a  plow 
beam,  taking  two  at  a  time,  or  by  hoe  or  rake. 

To  avoid  repetitions,  it  may  be  stated  here,  that,  for 
all  vegetables  hereafter  to  be  treated,  when  manuring 
in  the  drill  and  planting  on  beds  are  mentioned,  these 
operations  of  covering  the  manure  and  partly  leveling 
the  bed,  must  be  understood  to  have  preceded  the  putting 
in  of  the  seed. 

SOWING    THE    SEED. 

The  methods  of  depositing  the  seeds  are  various.  One 
of  the  very  best  trucl  ers  'n  the  vicinity  of  Savannah  has 


132  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

constructed  an  instrument  for  making  holes,  upon  the 
previously  raked  beds,  exactly  an  inch  and  a  half  deep, 
and  three  inches  apart.  Into  these  even  his  poorest 
hands  may  properly  drop  the  beans.  The  implement 
consists  of  a  wheel  upon  the  periphery,  or  outer  rim,  to 
which  are  fixed  pegs  of  the  desired  length  and  the  proper 
distance  apart.  Another  very  successful  farmer  sows  his 
beans  by  hand,  in  a  wide  furrow  three  inches  deep,  and 
covers  them  an  inch  and  a  half  deep  with  a  rake.  The 
former  claims  a  greater  uniformity  of  showing  above 
ground,  a  nicer  appearance,  a  saving  of  seed,  and  greater 
facility  in  working  the  crop,  as  the  hoe  and  cultivator 
may  run  close  to  the  straight  row.  The  other  claims 
that  his  plants,  in  the  wide  furrow,  come  up  in  a  sort  of 
quincunx  order,  support  each  other,  and  that  he  gets  more 
plants  upon  the  same  area.  Others  again  open  the  drills 
by  a  hoe,  or  small  bull-tongue  plow  and  use  a  seed  drill 
to  sow  the  seed,  and  cover  by  rake,  or  board,  or  by  means 
of  the  covering  attachment  with  which  the  drill  is  pro- 
vided. The  drill  must  of  course  be  arranged  to  work 
accurately  and  satisfactorily,  when  its  use  will  prove  the 
most  expeditious  and  the  cheapest  method  of  planting. 

CULTIVATION. 

"When  the  plants  are  three  or  four  inches  high,  the 
cultivator  may  be  run  between  the  rows,  and  just  before 
the  buds  appear,  the  plow  and  hoe  should  be  used  to  land 
up  or  draw  soil  to  the  stems,  a  useful  operation,  and  the 
last  in  the  cultivation  of  the  crop,  which  is,  of  course, 
only  to  be  performed  in  dry  weather. 

PICKING   AND    PACKING. 

The  pods  should  be  picked  with  great  care,  so  as 
to  cause  as  little  disturbance  of  the  roots  as  possible, 
and  before  the  seeds  become  large  enough  to  bulge 
out  the  pods,  and  while  yet  crisp  enough  to  "snap" 


BEAK — BUSH  OR  SNAP.  133 

when  bent.  Beans  are  apt  to  shrink  in  the  package, 
and  a  little  wilting  prior  to  packing,  in  this  case, 
is  less  objectionable.  The  beans  should  be  laid  reg- 
ularly in  the  crate,  well  shaken  down,  and  firmly  packed. 
The  crop  lasts  some  three  weeks,  and  about  six  pickings 
are  usually  made.  A  fair  yield  per  acre,  is  one  hundred 
and  fifty  crates,  although  more  are  sometimes  made,  and 
the  prices  range  from  one  dollar  to  four  dollars  per  crate, 
according  to  earliness  and  demand. 

INSECTS. 

Beans  are  such  an  early  crop,  and  the  pods  are  picked 
at  such  an  early  stage  of  growth,  that  the  insects  infest- 


Fig.  19.— BEAN  WEEVIL  (Bruchus  fabce). 

ing  them  rarely  damage  the  market-gardener's  crop  to 
any  extent. 

They  are  as  follows: 

First. — The  Bean-weevil  (Bruchus fabce.) 

Second. — The  Yellow  Bear  Caterpillar,  the  larva  of 
the  Miller-moth  (Spilosoma  Virginica). 

Third. — The  Fall  web-worm  (Hyphantria  textor). 

Fourth. — The  Blister-beetles,  such  as  the  Striped 
(Lytta  vittatd),  the  Ash-colored  (L.  cinerea),  and  the 
Margined  Blister-beetles  (L.  marginatd),  which  are,  how- 
ever, more  hurtful  to  the  Irish  potato. 


134  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


BEET  (Beta  vulgaris). 

JSettarave,   French ;   Bothe-Rube,  German ;  Biet  or  Kroot,  Dutch ;  Barba 
Biettda,  Italian ;  Bettarage,  Spanish. 

The  Beet  is  a  biennial,  tap-rooted  plant,  with  some- 
what fleshy  leaves;  it  is  a  native  of  the  sea  coast  of 
Southern  Europe,  and  has  been  cultivated  in  England 
since  1656. 

It  is  only  within  the  past  year  or  two,  that  the  beet 
has  been  grown  for  shipment  to  any  extent  south  of 
Norfolk,  although  it  has  for  many  years  been  one  of  the 
regular  Bermuda  crops.  Next  to  the  cabbage,  this  is 
one  of  the  most  extensively  and  profitably  cultivated 
vegetables  at  the  North,  and  it  is  probably  destined  to 
stand  high  in  the  estimation  of  the  truck-farmer. 

VARIETIES. 

The  turnip-rooted  varieties  are  the  earliest  and  best  to 
grow  at  the  South,  and  of  these  the  "Egyptian  "  or  "  Red 
Egyptian  Turnip"  stands  first,  notwithstanding  the 
seed  is  higher  in  price  than  any  other  sort.  The  "  Early 
Blood  Turnip"  is  next  in  value.  The  "Bassano"  is  the 
earliest  variety,  but  objectionable  in  consequence  of  its 
turning  a  light  color  in  boiling. 

SOIL  AND  SOWING. 

Beets,  like  the  ruta-baga,  may  be  sown  for  local  mar- 
kets in  September  and  October;  but  in  consequence  of 
sudden  changes  of  weather,  success  at  this  season  is 
doubtful.  Heavy  rains  and  hot  baking  suns,  whether 
the  seed  be  up  or  not,  may  destroy  a  sowing.  Although 
hardy,  freezing  will  kill  very  young  beets,  and  the 


BEET.  135 

safest  date  for  sowing  near  Savannah  is  about  Janu- 
ary 10th,  and  earlier  or  later,  according  to  latitude.  In 
middle  Florida  the  beet  may  be  sown  through  November 
and  December.  Like  all  tap-rooted  plants,  the  beet  de- 
lights in  a  deep,  rich,  loose  soil,  a  low,  but  thoroughly 
drained,  sandy  mould  being  the  best.  If  loamy,  let  the 
soil  be  deeply  stirred,  freed  from  clods  and  lumps,  and 
made  fine  and  mellow. 

It  is  desirable  to  have  clean  and  smooth  roots,  and 
fresh  stable  manure  in  the  drill  is  objectionable,  as  it 


Fig.  20.— EGYPTIAN  BEET.         Fig.  21.— EARLY  BLOOD  TURNIP  BEET. 

tends  to  make  them  branch  or  to  produce  "fingers  and 
toes."  Any  rank  manure  in  the  drill,  like  night-soil,  is 
objectionable,  and  hog  manure  is  said  to  communicate  an 
unpleasant  flavor  to  the  roots.  Beets  require  a  nitroge- 
nous fertilizer,  and  well-rotted  stable  manure,  thirty  loads 
to  the  acre,  broadcast,  supplemented  with  five  hundred 
pounds  of  Peruvian  guano,  or  with  three  hundred  pounds 
of  nitrate  of  soda;  or  three-fourths  of  a  ton  of  the  guano, 
or  half  a  ton  of  nitrate  of  soda,  composted  with  muck,  will 
suffice  without  the  stable  manure.  But  in  this  case,  the 
land  should  have  previously  produced  some  well-manured 
crop.  As  this  plant  is  a  native  of  the  sea  shore,  an  ap- 
plication of  twelve  bushels  of  salt  per  acre  is  beneficial  to 
crops  distant  from  the  coast.  If  the  cultivation  of  the 
beet  crop  is  to  be  entirely  by  hand,  the  seed  may  be  sown 


136  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

three-fourths  of  an  inch,  or  one  inch  deep,  with  a  hand 
drill  in  rows,  fifteen  to  eighteen  inches  apart.  On  level 
ground  sow  in  narrow  "lands,"  say  thirty  feet  wide, 
which  will  afford  additional  surface  drainage.  If  the 
planting  is  to  be  on  a  large  scale,  the  distance  between 
the  rows  must  be  from  thirty  to  thirty-six  inches,  accord- 
ing to  the  size  of  the  cultivator.  In  sowing  and  weed- 
ing, bear  in  mind  that  each  grain  contains  several  seeds. 
Owing  to  its  slow  germination,  beet  seed  is  often  soaked 
in  warm  water. — See  chapter  on  "  Seeds."  The  quantity 
of  seed  required  to  sow  an  acre  is  from  four  to  eight 
pounds,  according  to  the  above-mentioned  distances. 

CULTIVATION. 

The  young  plants  should  not  be  allowed  to  crowd  each 
other.  If  the  stand  is  close,  it  is  well  to  chop  out  spaces 
in  the  row  with  a  narrow  hoe,  and  subsequently,  when 
the  plants  are  about  two  inches  high,  they  should  be 
thinned  out  to  stand  from  four  to  six  inches  apart. 
Vacant  spaces  may  be  supplied;  but  transplanted  turnip- 
rooted  beets  are  not  apt  to  make  smooth  roots.  Subse- 
quent cultivation  consists  in  stirring  the  surface  between 
the  rows,  working  as  near  the  beets  as  possible,  and  in 
keeping  the  crop  free  from  weeds.  Frequent  hoeings 
between  the  narrow  rows  and  some  hand-weeding  will  be 
necessary.  For  the  wider  rows,  one  plowing,  the  use  of 
the  cultivator  twice,  and  one  hoeing  may  suffice  in  favor- 
able seasons,  but  more  should  be  given  if  needed. 

MARKETING. 

Beets  must  be  marketed  while  tender,  and  before  they 
are  full  grown.  When  about  three  inches  in  diameter, 
^hey  are  large  enough  for  shipment.  The  leaves  are  cut 
off.  within  about  three  inches  of  the  roots,  which,  un- 
washed, are  then  to  be  closely  and  regularly  packed  in 
well-ventilated  barrels,  covered  with  cloth.  The  prices 


CABBAGE  137 

of  the  past  season  ranged  from  two  dollars  per  barrel  up- 
wards; as  much  as  seven  dollars  and  fifty  cents  having 
been  secured  for  some  marketed  from  middle  Florida. 
The  beet  is,  in  this  country,  remarkably  free  from  insect 
depredations. 


CHAPTER  XV. 


CABBAGE  (Brassica  oleraced). 

CTioupomme,  or  Cabas  blanc,  French  ;   Kopfkohl,  German  ;   Kool,  Dutch ; 
Cavdo,  Italian  ;  Berza,  Spanish. 

The  Cabbage  was  a  favorite  culinary  vegetable  of  the 
Romans,  who  introduced  its  cultivation  into  England 
before  the  Christian  era,  although  it  grows  wild  along 
the  sea  shore  of  that  country,  particularly  near  Dover, 
where  it  is  abundant  on  the  chalk  cliffs. 

Cultivation  has  evolved  from  the  wild  plant  very 
many  sorts  and  varieties.  Of  these,  the  truck-farmer 
of  the  extreme  South  is  at  present  concerned  with  only 
a  few  select  varieties  of  the  common  or  heading  cabbage 
and  with  the  cauliflower,  kale  being  grown  only  at  Nor- 
folk and  vicinity.  Possibly  the  large  German  element 
in  the  populations  of  the  Northern  cities  may  in  time 
provide  a  market  for  kohl  rabi. 

VARIETIES. 

Climate  affects  the  cabbage  more,  perhaps,  than  it 
does  any  other  vegetable ;  and  a  variety  growing,  as  to 
appearance,  indifferently  well  in  both  countries,  may  be 
considered  superior  in  England,  and  be  discarded  as 
worthless  in  America,  while  some  sorts,  which  grow 
satisfactorily  in  one  region,  may  fail  in  another  not  very 
distant. 


138  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

A  variety  suitable  for  cultivation  should  (1)  be  sure  to 
form  heads;  (2)  produce  medium  to  large  heads;  (3)  the 
heads  should  be  very  hard  and  compact;  and  (4)  it 
should  be  a  popular  kind  in  the  majority  of  the  princi- 
pal markets. 

Some  varieties,  like  the  "  Schweinfurth,"  are  bulky  and 
delicate,  but  of  such  loose  structure  as  to  be  useless  for 
shipment,  as  they  would  shrink  very  much  in  the  pack- 
age. On  the  other  hand,  a  barrel  properly  packed  with 
a  solid-headed  variety,  would  shrink  to  a  very  limited 


Fig.  22.— WINNINGSTADT. 

extent  in  transit,  and  still  be  full  upon  arrival  in  mar- 
ket, to  the  satisfaction  of  the  buyer.  The  two  varieties 
that  combine  all  desirable  features  in  the  highest  degree, 
and  at  the  same  time  are  best  adapted  to  our  climate,  are 
the  "Early  Summer"  and  the  "Brunswick,"  with  tbe 
preference  for  the  former.  It  is  somewhat  smaller,  but 
owing  to  its  more  compact  habit  of  growth,  a  sufficiently 
larger  number  may  be  grown  to  the  acre,  to  make  up 
for  the  difference  in  individual  size.  The  retail  dealer 
will  realize  more  money  from  a  barrel  of  fine  medium- 
sized  cabbages,  than  from  one  containing  a  smaller  num- 
ber of  very  large  heads.  There  is  no  better  variety,  if  the 
Beeds  are  of  pure  stock,  for  forming  uniformly  solid  heads, 
than  the  "Jersey  Wakefield,"  but  it  is  small  and  liable 
to  burst  open  when  in  vigorous  growth  in  warm,  rainy 


CABBAGE. 


139 


weather  followiDg  a  drouth,  particularly  on  high,  sandy 
land.  The  remedy  for  this  is  "  root-pruning/'  which 
is  done  by  pushing  the  plants  over  slightly,  to  break 
some  of  the  roots,  or  by  cutting  down  alongside  of 


Fig.  23.— FOTTLER'S  BRUNSWICK. 

them  with  a  spade.  The  Winningstadt,  formerly  so 
highly  esteemed  as  a  reliable,  medium  early  kind,  and 
even  used  as  a  winter  sort,  of  late  years  appears  to  have 
degenerated,  is  liable  to  rot  in  the  stem,  and  in  warm 
.weather  its  leaves  turn  yellow  too  readily.  American  seeds 


Fig.  24. — JERSEY  WAKEFIELD. 

are  considered  as  producing  more  hardy  plants  than  the 
imported;  therefore,  for  a  crop  to  head  well  in  winter, 
the  American  "Flat  Dutch"  is  the  best  variety,  with 
"  Fottler's  Brunswick,"  which  is  an  American  variety  of 
the  German  "Brunswick"  cabbage,  as  second  choice. 


140  TmjCK-EARMltfG  At  THE  SCUTS. 


SEEDS   AND    SOWING. 

Cabbages  from  imported  seed  are  thought  to  be  more 
certain  to  head,  and  in  the  vicinity  of  Savannah,  those 
from  Germany  are  preferred,  however  it  may  be  in  other 
localities. 

It  is  of  more  importance  to  have  seed  of  a  good  strain 
of  the  cabbage  than  of  any  other  vegetable.  Poor  seeds 
of  any  of  the  genus  Brassica  are  dear  at  any  price. 

In  consequence  of  its  good  keeping  qualities,  the  cab- 
bage can  be  and  is  used  in  the  United  States  throughout 
the  year.  The  South  is  supplied  with  Northern  grown 
stock  during  the  hot  summer  months,  and  in  the  winter, 
the  first  shipments  arriving  about  the  middle  of  July. 
In  turn,  the  North  procures  its  supply  from  us  after  the 
exhaustion  of  the  stores  of  wintered  cabbages,  dating 
from  about  March  1st,  and  continuing  until  June. 
Owing  to  its  universal  consumption,  the  markets  have 
never  yet  been  glutted  with  cabbage.  Were  its  use  less 
universal,  as  the  Florida,  Georgia,  and  Carolina  crops 
are  all  marketed  during  the  same  period,  the  price  might 
fall  below  a  paying  standard.  The  opening  of  the  west- 
ern and  north-western  markets  for  the  less  perishable 
articles  of  the  truck-farmer,  by  lower  railroad  freights 
and  safer  transportation  facilities,  makes  it  probable  that 
many  years  will  elapse  before  sufficient  areas  are  appro- 
priated to  the  cultivation  of  such  vegetables,  as  to  cause 
the  supply  to  exceed  the  demand.  Cabbages  are  also 
grown  to  supply  other  than  the  Northern  markets,  of 
which  we  will  speak  hereafter.  The  seed  to  produce 
plants  for  the  more  important  shipping  crop  is  best  sown 
between  October  1st  and  15th.  It  may  be  sown  later; 
but  as  the  plants  are  subjected  to  severely  cold  weather  in 
December,  it  is  important  that  they  be  large  enough  at 
that  time  to  withstand  hard  frosts.  When  the  ther- 
mometer falls  below  twenty-four  degrees,  they  are  likely 
to  be  killed. 


CABBAGE.  141 

To  secure  the  necessary  hardiness,  and  low,  stocky 
growth,  the  seed  should  be  sown  thinly  on  rather  light, 
unmanured  soil.  Instead  of  making  a  sowing  in  the 
open  air  later  than  November  1st,  the  careful  gardener 
will  provide  against  losses  by  frost,  by  sowing  under 
glass  in  cold  frames,  about  November  1st.  The  cold 
frame  planes  will  only  be  used  in  case  those  in  the  open 
ground  have  been  killed  or  injured  by  freezing,  or  have 
grown  too  large  to  be  transplanted  for  a  later  crop.  To 
render  the  plants  as  hardy  as  possible,  the  soil  of  the 
frames  should  not  be  manured,  and  it  should  be  kept  as 
dry  as  the  health  of  the  plants  will  permit.  Sashes 
must  not  be  used,  day  or  night,  to  force  the  plants,  but 
are  only  to  be  put  on  at  night  for  protection  against  ap- 
prehended black  frost. 

For  the  location  of  a  cabbage  seed  bed  in  the  open  air, 
see  chapter  on  " Insects."  A  deep  and  freshly  stirred  soil 
is  not  indispensable  to  produce  good  plants,  and,  where 
moles  are  numerous,  they  are  very  apt  to  haunt  a  bed 
freshly  stirred,  and  destroy  many  young  plants.  The 
bed  may  be  thrown  ap  by  the  plow  a  fortnight  or  more 
before  the  seed  is  to  be  sown.  When  it  is  raked  off  later, 
many  young  weeds,  which  might  have  become  annoying, 
will  be  destroyed. 

The  seed  bed  should  be  about  four  feet  wide,  level  on 
top,  to  avoid  washing  by  heavy  rains,  and  elevated  a  few 
inches  above  the  general  surface.  The  seed  is  sown  from 
one-fourth  to  one-half  an  inch  deep,  according  to  the 
character  of  the  soil.  Make  the  drills  across  the  bed  four 
to  five  inches  apart,  to  allow  the  earth  to  be  stirred  be- 
tween the  rows,  firming  the  soil  by  the  roller  or  by  a 
patting  board.  When  sown  under  glass,  the  drills  may 
be  three  and  a  half  inches  apart.  If  the  soil  is  dry,  the 
beds  may  require  watering  to  cause  the  seed  to  germi- 
nate. It  is  not  advisable  to  sow  any  seed  within  two  or 
three  inches  of  the  back  of  the  frame,  or  the  plants  will 


142  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

grow  spindling  from  the  effects  of  the  heat  reflected 
from  the  boards.  Do  not  sow  as  thickly  near  the  front 
as  in  the  middle  of  the  bed,  lest  in  wet  weather  the  plants 
may  damp  off  while  young. 

At  the  South,  at  the  planting  season,  so  many  con- 
tingencies affect  the  sprouting  of  the  seed  and  the  safety 
of  the  young  plants,  when  placed  in  the  open  air,  that 
no  definite  quantity  of  seed,  which  will  suffice  for  a 
given  area,  can  be  stated.  Among  these  adverse  influ- 
ences are  hot  baking  suns,  heavy  rains,  cut-worms,  grass- 
worms  (Laplirygmafrugiperda),  and  grasshoppers. 

Peter  Henderson,  one  of  the  best  authorities  on  mar- 
ket gardening  at  the  North,  says  an  ounce  of  seed  will 
produce  two  thousand  plants — there  are  about  ten  thou- 
sand cabbage  seeds  in  an  ounce — and  A.  S.  Fuller,  another 
good  authority,  estimates  that  an  acre  will  require  from  a 
pound  to  a  pound  and  a  half  of  seed,  or  from  one  hundred 
and  sixty  thousand  to  two  hundred  and  forty  thousand 
seeds.  I  have  sown  pounds  of  seed  without  getting  even 
a  single  plant.  The  only  advice  to  be  given  is:  to  make 
frequent  sowings  and  on  different  parts  of  the  farm,  and 
to  follow  the  suggestion  in  the  chapter  on  "Insects."  If 
the  seed  is  sound  and  properly  sown  under  glass  and 
cared  for,  few  will  fail  to  furnish  available  plants. 

SOIL  AND  ITS   PREPARATION. 

The  land  best  adapted  to  raise  spring  cabbages  for  ship- 
ment, is  a  moist,  sandy  loam,  if  well  drained.  Any  good 
garden  soil,  properly  enriched  and  well  prepared,  will  an- 
swer, however,  if  it  be  not  too  light  and  sandy;  on  such 
soils  the  plants  maybe  affected  by  the  hot  suns  in  March 
and  April,  just  at  the  heading  season.  A  newly  cleared, 
well-drained  mould  is  excellent.  The  chalk  cliffs  of  the 
English  sea  shore  being  the  native  habitat  of  the  cabbage, 
admirable  crops  of  superior  quality  may  be  produced  near 


CABBAGE.  143 

our  coast  under  the  influence  of  the  moist  sea  air,  wher- 
ever the  soil  is  adapted  to  this  plant.  Lime  is  very  ben- 
eficial to  the  whole  cabbage  family,  and  soil,  otherwise  of 
desirable  quality,  on  the  immediate  sea  coast  of  the  main- 
land, or  on  any  of  the  Sea  Islands,  if  well  supplied  with 
crumbling  oyster-shells,  the  rubbish  of  Indian  camps, 
cannot  be  surpassed  for  this  vegetable.  That  these  ac- 
cumulations of  oyster  shells,  with  a  few  shells  of  the 
clam  and  conch,  are  of  Indian  origin,  is  proven  by  the 
frequent  occurrence  among  them  of  pieces  of  Indian  pot- 
tery. 

Heavy  soils  require  to  be  more  deeply  stirred  by  the 
turning  and  the  subsoil  plows,  and  more  frequently  har- 
rowed, than  those  of  lighter  character. 

At  the  North,  land  consecutively  cropped  with  cab- 
bages seems  to  become  infested  with  the  cause,  whatever 
it  may  be,  of  the  disease  of  the  root  called  "clubfoot;" 
an  additional  reason  for  rotation  in  cabbage  culture. 
This  appears  to  be  less  the  case,  when  the  land  is  plenti- 
fully supplied  with  lime  naturally,  or  when  it  is  used  as 
a  manurial  application.  Although  the  cabbage  is  little 
affected  with  this  disease  at  the  South,  it  is  not  well  to 
have  cabbages  follow  cabbages  on  the  same  ground. 

The  richer  the  manuring,  in  excess  of  what  any  possi- 
ble crop  could  be  able  to  take  from  the  soil,  and  the  bet- 
ter the  preparation,  the  larger  will  not  only  be  the  indi- 
vidual heads,  and,  therefore,  the  weight  of  the  entire 
produce,  but  the  more  certainty  will  there  be  of  the 
whole  crop  heading  up  uniformly. 

The  table  opposite  shows  the  composition  of  fifty  tons- 
equal  to  eighty-eight  wagon  loads  of  loose  stable  manure, 
holding  thirty  bushels,  or  one  thousand  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  pounds,  each;  and  that  of  a  crop  of  twenty- 
five  tons  of  cabbages,  both  according  to  the  analyses  of 
Prof.  E.  Wolff. 


144 


TRUCK-FAKMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 


59  Tons  of 
fresh  Stable 
Manure 
contain 

25  Tons  of 
Cabbages 
contain 

Nitrogen  

546  Ibs. 

120  Ibs. 

Potash    

520      ' 

315    * 

280      ' 

70    « 

Soda      

100      ' 

45    ' 

Lime  

210      * 

155    « 

Magnesia  

140      ' 

30    « 

A  study  of  tlie  above  table  will  show: 

First. — That  a  crop  of  twenty-five  tons  of  cabb&gos  will 
exhaust  within  fifty-five  pounds  all  the  lime  contained  in 
an  application  of  fifty  tons  of  stable  manure,  and,  if  only 
that  quantity  were  applied,  an  English  or  Northern  yield 
of  fifty  tons,  not  an  excessive  estimate,  under  their  closer 
planting,  would  require  one  hundred  pounds  more  of 
lime  than  is  contained  in  the  manure.  As  was  stated 
before,  nearly  all  land  holds  sufficient  lime  for  ordinary 
crops;  but,  unless  the  soil  is  rich  in  this  component 
(often  the  case  on  the  coast),  land  used  for  cabbage  crops 
would  be  benefited  by  a  dressing  of  lime,  of  about  thirty 
bushels  to  the  acre,  every  three  or  four  years.  It  is  not 
only  a  chief  constituent  of  .the  crop,  but  it  renders  the 
nitrogen  in  the  soil  more  available. 

Second. — That  exceedingly  rich  land  is  required  for  a 
^ood  crop  of  cabbages;  therefore,  as  no  crop  can  take  up 
all  the  nitrogen  and  other  plant  food  contained  in  an  ap- 
plication of  manure,  the  larger  the  amount  of  this  plant 
food  and  the  greater  its  concentration  and  availability, 
the  more  satisfactory  will  be  the  result. 

Third. — That  if  the  stable  manure  used  is  deficient  in 
liquid  excrement,  or  has  been  exposed  to  leaching  rains, 
fifty  tons  should  be  supplemented  either  with  good  Peru- 
vian guano,  or  with  nitrate  of  soda  and  an  acid  phosphate, 
or  with  night-soil.  If  stable,  or  any  other  bulky  or  com- 
posted manure  is  to  be  used,  it  is  best  to  apply  it  broad- 
cast for  cabbage,  after  the  land  has  been  thoroughly  pre- 


CABBAGE.  145 

pared  by  plow  and  harrow,  and  then  to  turn  it  into  beds 
with  a  one-horse  plow. 

For  applying  bulky  manures,  either  broadcast  or  in  drill, 
for  cabbages, Irish  potatoes,  or  other  crops,  the  truck-farm- 
ers who  plant  in  the  vicinity  of  Savannah  on  an  exten- 
sive scale  use  a  manure-spreader.  This  applies  the  manure 
not  only  evenly  at  a  certain  rate,  which  is  very  well  reg- 
ilated,  but  it  cuts  up  and  mixes  the  manure  during  the 
distribution.  Of  stable  manure  accumulated  under  shel- 
ter and  well-rotted  without  having  been  fire-fanged, 
forty  two-horse  wagon  loads  to  the  acre  on  good  land, 
which  has  previously  been  fertilized  for  a  vegetable  crop, 
is  a  fair  manuring.  If  of  less  valuable  quality,  the  quan- 
tity should  be  increased,  or  its  character  improved  by 
adding  guano,  etc.,  as  above  recommended.  Instead  of 
stable  manure,  a  good  compost  applied  in  quantity  pro- 
portionate to  its  quality,  may  be  used.  This  may  con- 
sist of  Peruvian  guano,  or  some  reliable  ammoniated 
superphosphate  of  lime  (acid  phosphate),  or  of  cotton 
seed,  or  night-soil,  composted  with  muck  or  leaf-mould. 
If  there  be  a  specific  manure  for  cabbage,  it  is  good, 
pure,  fine  bone-flour. 

Of  the  crops  raised  by  the  trunk-farmer,  there  are  one 
or  two  of  which  I  may  claim,  without  egotism,  to  have 
produced  stock  of  superior  quality.  Among  these  are 
the  two  members  of  the  Brassica  genus,  cultivated  under 
this  latitude  for  the  Northern  markets.  Being  situated 
too  distant  from  the  city  to  procure  a  satisfactory  sup- 
ply of  stable  manure,  I  cannot  too  urgently  impress  upon 
my  fellow-farmers,  similarly  situated,  the  indispensability 
of  plowing  under  the  "Clover  of  the  South,"  our  cow 
pea,  for  successful  cabbage  culture,  and  indeed,  although 
perhaps  in  less  degree,  for  the  growing  of  any  other 
crop.  It  should  precede  for  them  every  other  application 
of  manure  for  cabbages:  Soda  and  potash  are  inter- 
changeable in  the  composition  of  plants.  Thus  a  plant 
7 


146 


TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE   SOUTH. 


grown  on  a  soil  rich  in  the  former,  but  poor  in  the  latter, 
will  contain  much  more  soda  than  potash,  and  vice  versa. 
The  large  preponderance  of  soda  in  the  following  analysis 
of  the  cow  pea  is  attributable  to  the  fact,  that  it  grew 
upon  soil  near  Chapel  Hill,  N.  0.,  which,  in  dry  weather, 
is  sometimes  coated  white  with  carbonate  of  soda. 

TABLE  SHOWING  THE  COMPARATIVE  FERTILIZING  VALUE  OF  COW  PEA 
VINES  AND  RED  CLOVER. 


4 

| 

1 

. 

1 

1  - 

H 

§ 

. 

$9 

£S 

^ 

* 

o 

1 

1 

1 

| 

P 

1^ 

55 

1 

1 

Cow  pea  vines  

10.88 

17.13 

4.96 

16.58 

6.841.68 

0.70 

0.14 

13.20 

Bed  clover,  ripe  

23.21 

1.07 

8.21 

22.85 

6.662.02 

1.78 

2.50 

32.60 

Doubtless  fine  cabbages  maybe  raised  directly  from  the 
seed  sown  in  place,  instead  of  raising  the  plants  in  a 
seed-bed  and  then  transplanting  them.  Experience  and 
theory  have  long  since  shown  the  expediency  of  trans- 
ferring the  plants  from  the  seed-bed  to  the  open  ground. 
By  the  former  practice,  nothing  is  gained  and  something 
is  lost.  Apart  from  the  advantages  of  transplanting — 
(see  chapter  on  that  subject),  we  ha.ve,  on  a  very  small 
area,  say  one  hundred  and  fifty  square  feet,  a  sufficient 
number  of  plants  to  set  an  acre.  With  at  least  one  work- 
ing in  the  first  six  weeks,  of  the  land  to  which  the  plants 
are  transferred,  we  avoid  the  possible  damage  to  the  soil, 
during  six  weeks  of  fall  weather,  by  heavy  packing  rains, 
and  we  place  the  manure  fresh  and  concentrated  around 
the  newly-formed  roots,  when  the  plant  has  sufficiently 
advanced  in  growth  to  make  use  of  it. 

TRANSPLANTING. 

Cabbages  in  our  southern  climates  are  marketable, 
though  not  full-grown,  in  about  five  months  from  the 
seed,  the  time  depending  upon  the  degree  of  moisture  anc} 


CABBAGE.  147 

the  warmth  of  the  season.  Plants,  if  large  enough,  may 
be  put  out  about  November  1st,  and  successively, 
whenever  circumstances  are  favorable,  until  January 
1st.  After  this  date,  successful  marketing  will  be  more 
doubtful,  although  in  case  of  loss  by  freezing,  well-grown, 
sturdy  plants,  put  out  up  to  February  1st,  as  far  north 
as  Savannah,  may  come  in  early  enough  to  anticipate  the 
Norfolk  crop. 

When  a  plant  is  pulled  from  the  seed-bed,  the  tap-root 
will  probably  be  so  shortened  as  to  encourage  the  emis- 
sion of  numerous  new  fibrous  roots.  If  not,  its  extremity 
should  be  pinched  off.  If  the  roots  are  puddled,  they 
are  more  apt  to  take  root  promptly.  This  is  done  by 
making  a  mush  or  mud  of  clay,  fresh  cow  dung  and 
water,  or  of  clay,  or  soil  and  some  weak  solution  of 
any  fertilizer,  stirring  it  up  to  form  a  mixture  as  thick 
as  cream.  The  roots  of  the  plants  are  to  be  dipped  in 
this,  and  if  the  plants  are  kept  in  the  shade  for  twenty- 
four  hours,  young  rootlets  will  commence  to  grow;  but 
the  plants  must  not  be  exposed  to  dry  ness,  until  the  roots 
are  in  the  soil.  Puddling  is  not  a  necessary  operation. 

Should  a  drouth  prevail  during  the  whole  proper 
transplanting  season,  watering  during  the  process  may 
be  indispensable  on  very  light  soil.  In  such  rare  con- 
tingency a  weak  liquid  manure  is  better  than  pure  water. 

The  stems  of  all  the  plants  of  the  Brassica  genus 
are  the  most  vulnerable  part;  to  protect  these  from  frost, 
to  place  the  extremity  of  the  root  nearer  to  moisture, 
to  encourage  the  formation  of  roots  along  the  inserted 
stem,  and  finally,  to  secure  the  plant  more  firmly  in  the 
soil,  it  should  be  planted  down  to  the  stalk  of  the  up- 
permost leaf,  or  very  nearly  to  the  crown  of  the  plant. 

Though  occasionally  planted  closer  together,  the  proper 
distance  for  Winningstadt,  and  other  compactly-growing 
varieties,  is  eighteen  inches  in  the  row,  and  for  the 
Brunswick,  and  other  large  kinds,  from  twenty-one  to 


148  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

twenty-four  inches,  the  beds,  or  rows,  being  three  and  a 
half  and  four  feet  apart  respectively. 

CULTIVATION. 

Plants  cultivated,  like  the  cabbage,  for  their  foliage, 
should  be  pushed  by  frequent  stirring  of  the  soil.  No 
vegetable  responds  more  promptly  to  generous  treatment 
than  this.  As  soon  as  the  plants  commence  to  grow,  the 
rows  may  be  barred  off  by  the  plow  to  loosen  the  soil, 
but  it  must  by  no  means  be  deferred  late  enough  to  stunt 
them  by  injuring  the  roots.  (See  chapter  on  "  Insects'"). 
Under  ordinary  circumstances,  two  or  three  plowings, 
exclusive  of  the  above,  the  return  of  the  soil  to  the  beds, 
and  a  couple  of  hoeings  may  be  sufficient  for  this  crop. 

In  garden  culture,  and  on  a  small  scale,  it  is  recom- 
mended to  hoe  every  few  days,  and  only  while  the  dew  is 
on;  but  the  truck-farmer  cannot  make  a  hobby  of  his 
cabbage  field  to  the  neglect  of  other  crops,  however  val- 
uable this  particular  one  may  be. 

GATHERING  THE   CROP   AND    MARKETING. 

The  Northern  demand  generally  commences  early  in 
March,  and  the  crop  should  then  be  in  full  heading  to 
meet  it. 

Judgment  and  experience  are  needed  to  cut  cabbages 
properly.  Before  its  maturity,  a  head  may  be  soft,  that 
a  little  later  will  become  hard  and  compact.  Although 
a  matured  head  presents  a  peculiar  appearance,  recog- 
nizable by  an  experienced  grower,  in  part  by  becoming 
paler  on  top,  it  should  be  grasped  and  felt  with  the  left 
hand,  before  the  hatchet  (which,  with  a  little  longer 
handle  than  usual,  is  the  best  cutting  tool,)  is  applied. 
In  preparing  the  heads  for  market,  only  a  few  outer  leaves 
should  be  left  to  protect  them  from  bruising  in  the  pack- 
age and,  for  the  same  reason,  the  stems  should  be  trim- 
med close  to  the  heads, 


CABBAGE. 


By  comparing  the  valuable  organic  matter  contained 
in  clover,  cabbage,  and  turnips,  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
cabbage  outranks  the  latter  as  food  for  cattle. 


4 

•1 

||§ 

s»*<  « 

1 

1 

P 

jSs 

| 

1 

Clover             

80 

3.3 

7.7 

0.7 

4.5 

90 

1.5 

6.3 

0.4 

2.0 

Turnip  

92 

1.1 

5.1 

0.1 

1.0 

The  best  use,  therefore,  to  make  of  the  waste  leaves, 
is  to  feed  them  to  stock.  Unless  so  utilized,  the  heads 
had  better  be  cut  out  so  that  very  little  subsequent  trim- 
ming may  be  required,  and  the  leaves  and  stalks  plowed 
under,  instead  of  allowing  them  to  grow,  to  the  detriment 
of  the  land.  The  refuse,  if  preferred,  may  be  conveyed 
to  the  compost  heap,  which  should  be  at  some  distance 
from  human  habitation.  By  the  use  of  sufficient  cover- 
ing material,  soil,  or  muck,  the  offensive  gases  (phos- 
phoretted  and  sulphuretted  hydrogen)  may  be  absorbed, 
With  such  bulky  crops  as  the  cabbage,  packing  should 
be  done  near  the  field.  During  the  cooler  morning 
hours  and  cloudy  weather,  it  may  proceed  in  the  open 
air,  but  during  hot  sunshine,  it  were  better  under  shel- 
ter, for  fear  of  subsequent  heating  in  the  packages. 

Crates  should  only  be  used  when  barrels  cannot  be  had, 
the  latter  being  preferred  by  the  trade.  They  must  be 
properly  ventilated,  however,  by  six  holes  in  the  sides. 
They  are  not  double  headed,  but  are  covered  with  cloth, 
the  contents  generally  bulging  about  six  inches  above  the 
top. 

Whatever  package  is  used,  the  cabbage  should  be 
evenly  and  firmly  packed,  using  considerable  force,  so 
that  no  displacements  and  consequent  bruising  may  oc- 
cur during  transportation.  Each  variety  should  be 
marketed  in  separate  packages,  and  it  is  well,  even  with 


150  TBUCK-FARMIKG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

cabbages,  to  assort  the  sizes,  although  this  is  not  generally 
done.  A  barrel  will  contain  from  eighteen  large  Bruns- 
wicks  to  fifty  of  the  Winningstadt,  as  small  as  should  be 
shipped,  although  smaller  will  sell.  An  equal  crop  of 
the  two  varieties  will  average  seven  thousand  two  hun- 
dred and  sixty  plants  per  acre.  With  reliable  seed,  and 
under  favorable  circumstances,  six  thousand  eight  hun- 
dred of  these  should  produce  marketable  heads. 

From  one  hundred  and  seventy  to  two  hundred  barrels 
per  acre  is  a  good  crop.  One  of  the  most  successful 
gardeners  near  Savannah  marketed  one  thousand  seven 
hundred  barrels  from  eight  acres,  which  averaged,  in  the 
Northern  markets,  four  dollars  per  barrel  gross.  His 
crop,  closely  planted,  was  manured  with  forty  two-horse- 
wagon  loads  of  unsheltered  stable  manure  and  night-soil, 
supplemented  with  Peruvian  guano. 

My  own  shipments  last  year  averaged  four  dollars  and 
fifty-three  cents,  principally  in  the  New  York  and  Bos- 
ton markets.  This  may  have  been  due  to  better  sales 
rather  than  to  the  superior  quality  of  the  cabbages,  and 
good  packing  may  have  had  something  to  do  with  it. 

It  must,  however,  be  stated  that  prices  ruled  unpre- 
cedentedly  high  during  the  season  of  1882. 

Freights  from  Savannah  to  New  York  and  Boston 
were  fifty  cents  per  barrel.  Commissions  on  sales  were 
from  seven  to  eight  per  cent. 

Near  Norfolk  a  local  variety  of  cabbage  is  cultivated, 
known  as  "  Tait's  Extra  Early."  The  seeds  of  this  are 
sown  about  the  last  of  August,  the  crop  is  transplanted 
in  November,  and  is  ready  for  market  about  April  1st. 
Jersey  Wakefield,  and  Large  York,  sown  about  Sept. 
20th,  and  set  oat  in  early  winter,  will  come  in  about  the 
same  time.  Seeds  of  the  last  two  kinds,  if  sown  for  the 
main  crop,  under  glass  in  October,  and  the  plants  put  out 
in  February,  will  come  in  later,  but  produce  much  the 
best  cabbages. 


CABBAGE.  151 

During  a  glut  in  the  markets,  Norfolk  cabbages  may 
not  pay  the  freight.  The  maximum  price  is  three  dol- 
lars and  a  quarter  per  barrel. 

It  is  probably  owing  to  the  fact  that  larger  varieties 
are  grown  near  Charleston  and  Savannah,  that  the  early 
arrivals  from  Norfolk  do  not  seriously  affect  the  prices  of 
shipments  made  at  the  same  time  from  more  southern 
and  distant  points. 

The  cabbage  crop  is  marketed  early  enough  to  be  fol- 
lowed by  a  planting  of  corn,  to  be  succeeded  in  turn  by 
fall  turnips;  or  the  land  may  be  used  for  a  second  crop  of 
Irish  potatoes,  in  which  the  manure  would  be  available. 
Such  is  the  management  of  the  spring  cabbage  crop  for 
the  Northern  markets.  The  period  during  which  the 
truck-farmer  markets  his  crops  for  shipment,  is  confined 
to  the  five  months  from  March  to  July  inclusive.  Ow- 
ing to  the  great  number  of  small  patches  of  all  kinds  of 
common  vegetables,  owned  by  negroes  and  whites  near 
the  city,  the  supply  is  so  well  up  to  the  demand,  that  the 
majority  of  truck-farmers  have  found  it  unprofitable  to 
attend  the  regular  local  market.  If  confined  exclusively 
to  the  Northern,  and  the  local  sales  of  vegetables,  the 
growers  would  have  no  income  during  seven  months  of  the 
year;  hence  on  the  lines  of  the  railroads  truck-farming  is 
generally  an  adjunct  to  cotton  planting,  and  in  Florida  to 
that  and  to  orange  growing.  Cabbage  is  one  of  the  few 
vegetables  that  may  be  made  available  for  the  markets 
of  the  interior,  where  there  arises  a  demand  during  the 
later  winter  months.  The  variety  best  adapted  to  this 
season  is  the  more  hardy  American  "Flat  Dutch." 
Seed  for  this  crop  may  be  sown  from  June  to  September; 
but  the  earlier  the  better,  as  cabbage  to  head  in  time 
for  the  winter  crop  should  "bud,"  or  commence  to 
head,  before  cold  weather.  Owing  to  hot  suns  and 
heavy  rains,  and  destructive  insects,  it  is  difficult  to 
raise  the  plants.  The  soil  for  the  seed-bed  may  be 


152  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

richer  than  for  the  later  crop.  Although  cabbage  re- 
quires an  open  exposure,  the  seed-bed  may  be  under  the 
partial  shade  of  trees,  but  not  near  enough  to  be  under 
their  drip.  If  the  seed-bed  is  protected  by  a  screen,  it 
should  be  high  enough  (seven  to  eight  feet)  and  open 
enough  to  admit  air  and  light.  A  mat  made  of  our  com- 
mon large  cane  admits  of  removal  occasionally,  and  the 
thickening  of  the  stem  at  the  joints  prevents  the  total 
exclusion  of  air  and  light.  The  plants  for  this  crop  are 
generally  put  out  from  August  to  the  middle  of  October. 
There  is  no  material  difference  in  the  management  of  the 
two  crops.  Cabbages  are  shipped  in  grain  sacks  or  bar- 
rels to  the  West  and  the  upper  interior  cities  of  Georgia. 
The  prices  in  Atlanta  were  from  two  and  a  half  to  five 
cents  per  pound,  at  wholesale,  for  the  crop  of  1882. 

It  is  now  impossible  to  say  what  were  the  insect  enemies 
of  the  cabbage  in  the  country  where  it  was  indigenous,  and 
before  its  succulence  and  delicacy  had  increased  and  its 
cultivation  had  extended  over  so  large  a  part  of  the  globe. 
We  have  imported  two  of  its  pests:  the  Eape-butterfly  and 
the  Cabbage  plant-louse  from  Europe,  and  may  in  turn 
export  some  of  our  native  plagues  to  other  countries. 
The  cabbage  is  certainly  more  infested  by  destructive  in- 
sects than  any  other  cultivated  vegetable.  Those  to  the 
attacks  of  which  it  is  subject  at  the  South,  are: 

1.  The  Wavy-striped  Flea-beetle  (Haltica  striolata). 

2.  The  12-spotted  Squash-beetle  (Diabrotica  12-punc* 

3.  The  Cabbage  Maggot  (Anthomya  brassicce).  [tata). 

4.  The  Cabbage  Plusia  (Plusia  brassicce). 

5.  The  Rape  Butterfly  (Pier is  rapes). 

6.  The  Pot-herb  Butterfly  (Pieris  oleracea). 

7.  The  Southern  Cabbage  Butterfly  (Pieris Protodice). 

8.  The  Zebra  Caterpillar  (Mamestra  picta). 

9.  The  Cabbage  Pionea  (Pionea  rimosalis). 

'  10.  The  Cabbage  Plant-louse  (Aphis  brassicce). 
11.  The  Harlequin  Bug  (Strachia  histrionica). 


CABBAGE.  153 

12.  The  Tarnished  Plant-bug  (Capsus  oUineatm). 

13.  The  False  Chinch-Bug  (Nysius  destructor.) 

FLEA-BEETLE. 

The  first  in  order  to  attack  the  plant  in  its  earliest 
growth,  and  before  the  appearance  of  rough  leaves,  is  the 
Flea-beetle  in  the  perfect  state.  Lime  or  soot,  dusted  on 
the  young  plants,  while  wet  with  dew,  seems  distasteful 
enough  to  the  insect  to  drive  it  off.  The  larva  also  in- 
jures the  roots  of  larger  cabbage  plants.  ' 

12-SPOTTED   SQUASH-BEETLE.   - 

Only  within  the  last  three  years  has  the  12-spotted 
Squash-beetle  been  injurious  to  the  cabbage  crop.  The 
perfect  insect  appears  in  February,  puncturing  and  eat- 
ing the  leaves.  Although  sometimes  considerable  dam- 
age has  been  done,  it  has  not  been  sufficient  to  compel  a 
resort  to  Paris  green. 

CABBAGE  MAGGOT. 

The  Cabbage-fly,  or  perfect  insect  of  the  Cabbage 
Maggot,  was  imported  from  Europe  about  1856,  but 
its  depredations  have  until  recently  been  confined  to  the 
North.  The  "Club-root,"  a  warty  enlargement  of  the 
roots,  has  been  ascribed  to  this  insect,  but  I  have  never 
seen  it  at  the  South.  The  Cabbage  Maggot  had  not 
been  observed  to  be  injurious  to  the  crop  until  after  the 
publication  of  the  first  edition  of  this  book,  but  since 
then  it  has  become  the  most  destructive  of  the  many  in- 
sect pests  of  the  cabbage,  ruining  large  fields  in  South 
Carolina  during  the  spring  of  1885,  and  in  Georgia  dur- 
ing that  of  1886  so  completely,  that  farmers  plowed  them 
up  for  other  crops.  When  a  plant  shows  signs  of  the 
presence  of  the  insect  by  a  sickly  appearance,  it  is  already 
past  remedy.  The  fly  deposits  its  egg  on  the  plant  at  or 


154 


TRUCK-FARMIKG   AT  THE   SOUTH. 


near  the  surface  of  the  ground,  and  the  maggot  hatching, 
eats  away  its  bark  and  penetrates  the  stem. 

Half  a  teaspoonful  of  bi-sulphide  of  carbon  to  each 
plant,  poured  into  a  hole  made  by  a  stick  at  the  root, 
will  kill  the  maggots,  after  which  a  healthy  plant  may  be 
substituted.  The  vapor  of  the  bi-sulphide  of  carbon  is 
highly  inflammable.  A  simpler  and  safer  remedy  is  kero- 
sene emulsion. 

The  insect  is  strictly  confined  to  plants  of  the  Cabbage 


Fig.  26.— RAPE  BUTTEBFLT  (Pleris  rapce). 
a.  Larva ;  b,  Chrysalis ;  c,  Female  ;  d,  Male. 

family,  and  isolated  farms  may  be  kept  comparatively  ex- 
empt by  having  no  winter  crops  of  any  of  its  members. 
The  most  destructive  green  cabbage-worm  at  the  South, 
is  the  looping,  or  half  measuring,  larva  of  the  night- 
flying,  or  noctuid  moth,  the  Cabbage  Plusia  (Plusia 
Irassicce).  All  cabbage  growers  know  how  these  with 
the  help  of  some  others,  honey-comb  cabbages  in  the 
spring. 


CABBAGE.  155 

LIGHT-COLORED   CABBAGE-WORMS. 

The  following  three,  viz.,  the  Kape  Butterfly  (Pieris 
rapce),  the  Pot-herb  Butterfly  (P.  oleracea),  and  the 
Southern  Cabbage-Butterfly  (P.  Protodice),  are  white  or 
cream- colored  butterflies.  The  first  two  are  more  nu- 
merous and  destructive  than  the  third,  our  native  South- 
ern species.  The  larvae  and  butterflies  bear  a  general 
resemblance  to  each  other,  though  they  differ  in  their 
markings,  as  will  be  seen  by  an  examination  of  the 
engravings. 

All  of  these  cabbage- worms  have  their  insect  enemies. 
The  Pot-herb  Butterfly  has  lately  been  kept  in  check  by 


Fig.  27.— POT-HERB  BUTTERFLY  (Pieris  olerosca). 
a,  Larva ;  6,  Butterfly  ;  c,  Chrysalis. 

its  own  appropriate  parasite  (Pteromalus  puparum),  a 
little  greenish  wasp-like  insect,  less  than  one-tenth  of  an 
inch  in  length,  with  four  delicate  transparent  wings. 
These  butterflies  almost  invariably  deposit  their  eggs  on 
the  under  surface  of  the  leaves.  They  hibernate  gen- 
erally in  the  chrysalis  state,  attaching  themselves  to 
fences,  stems  of  bushes,  etc. ,  in  the  vicinity. 

If  boards  were  fixed  in  the  cabbage  field,  about  two 
inches  above  the  ground,  these  worms  would  probably 
resort  to  them,  but  such  methods  to  capture  them  and 
diminish  their  number,  after  the  infliction  of  the  dam- 


156 


TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 


age,  particularly  on  a  large  scale,  and  without  coopera- 
tion, would  be  impracticable. 

The  Zebra  Caterpillar  (Mamestra  picta,)  is  not  suffi- 


Fig.  28.— SOUTHERN  CABBAGE  BUTTERFLY  (Pieris  Protodice). 
^  a,  Larva ;  b,  Chrysalis. 

ciently  numerous  to  do  much  harm.  The  Cabbage 
Pionea  (P.  rimosalis,)  I  have  never  found  upon  the 
cabbage. 

REMEDIES  FOR   CABBAGE-WORMS. 

The  numerous  deterrent  remedies  recommended  as  ef- 
fective against  the  cabbage-worms,  although  many  may 


Fig.  29.— SOUTHERN  CABBAGE  BUTTERFLY— Female. 

be  distasteful  or  offensive  to  them,  are  all  comparatively 
worthless.  This  is  owing  partly  to  the  impossibility  of 
their  being  made  to  reach  every  part  of  the  plant  haunted 
by  the  insect,  particularly  the  under  surface  of  the  leaf, 
and  the  interior  of  the  head.  Among  the  proposed 


CABBAGE. 


157 


remedies  are:  red  pepper,  soot,  lime,  ashes,  salt,  sulphur, 
solution  of  copperas,  yeast,  soap-suds,  etc.  Water  heat- 
ed to  one  hundred  and  forty,  or  even  to  one  hundred 
and  sixty  degrees,  was  at  one  time  highly  praised  as  an 
insecticide;  but  the  same  objection  applies  to  it  as  to  the 
others.  Were  it  not  hazardous  to  apply  to  the  eatable  por- 
tions of  vegetables,  like  the  cabbage,  etc.,  poisons  danger- 
ous to  man,  we  would  have  an  effective  means  in  Paris 
green  or  London  purple  for  the  removal  of  these  insects. 
The  remedy  for  cabbage-worms,  tested  and  recom- 


Fig.  30.— ZEBRA.  CATERPILLAR  (Mamestro,  picta). 
a,  Larva;  6,  Moth. 

mended  by  our  best  authority  on  such  matters,  Prof. 
Riley,  is  Pyrethrum  powder.  This  is  also  called  "Dal- 
matian," or  "Persian  Insect  Powder,"  and  the  name 
"California  Buhach,"  is  given  to  the  fresher  and  there- 
fore more  effective  Calif ornian  product.  This  is  not  a 
mere  deterrent,  rendering  the  part  of  the  plant  it  touches 
obnoxious  to  the  worm,  but  it  acts  as  a  poison  by  con- 
tact, convulsing  and  paralyzing  the  insect.  While  this 
powder  is  very  effective  with  some  kinds  of  insects,  it  is 


158  TKUCK-FAKMItfG   AT  THE  SOUTH. 

comparatively  harmless  to  others,  and  is  more  effective 
on  young  worms  than  on  older  ones  of  the  same  species. 
It  is  more  fatal  to  the  caterpillars  of  Pieris  butterflies 
than  to  those  of  the  Plusia  moth.  The  powder  does 
not  always  kill  the  worm,  but  merely  so  disables  it  that 
it  falls  to  the  ground,  where  it  will  readily  become  the 
prey  of  ants  and  other  natural  enemies. 

Pyrethrum  seems  to  owe  its  virtues  to  a  volatile  oil, 
and  its  effects  are  not  lasting  in  the  open  air.  It  may 
be  used  in  the  form  of  dry  powder,  mixed,  if  fresh,  with 
from  ten  to  twenty  parts  of  flour,  and  blown  by  means 
of  a  bellows,  or  dusted  upon  the  plant.  It  may  also  be 
used  in  the  form  of  an  alcoholic  tincture,  as  a  tea  or  de- 
coction, or  even  a  mere  solution  or  infusion  in  water,  and 
applied  by  means  of  an  atomizer  or  sprinkler.  The 
fumes  of  burning  Pyrethrum  are  applicable  only  in 
greenhouses  or  in  dwelling  rooms,  which  may  be  cleared 
of  flies  and  mosquitoes  by  its  use. 

PLANT-LICE. 

The  astounding  fecundity  of  plant-lice  (Aphides),  and 
their  peculiar  habit  of  attacking  stunted  plants,  have 
already  been  mentioned.  If  the  season  be  not  too  far 
advanced,  or  the  plants  too  large,  a  badly  infested  cab- 
bage should  be  pulled  up,  removed  from  the  field,  and 
its  place  supplied  by  a  clean  and  healthy  one. 

The  same  valueless  applications,  with  the  addition  of 
tobacco  water  and  snuff  (tobacco  smoke  in  greenhouses), 
as  in  the  case  of  the  cabbage-worms,  have  been  also 
recommended  for  plant- lice.  Pyrethrum  may  be  better 
than  any  other,  but  it  would  be  useless  to  apply  reme- 
dies to  a  large,  badly  infested  cabbage,  in  the  hope  that 
it  would  ever  become  marketable.  If  of  any  effect,  its  ap- 
plication might  destroy  some  plant-lice,  but  I  have  never 
carefully  examined  an  infested  plant  without  finding 
some  of  the  natural  enemies  of  the  aphides  at  work 


CABBAGE.  159 

among  them,  and,  if  left  alone,  the  lice  would  eventu- 
ally succumb.  An  effective  application  would  probably 
destroy  friend  as  well  as  foe.  My  only  success  in  fighting 
plant-lice  was  by  transferring  the  larvae  of  the  lady-bird 
from  less  valuable  ruta  bagas  to  cauliflowers  or  cabbages. 
The  best  advice  in  the  premises  is:  prepare  the  land 
thoroughly,  manure  it  richly,  and  cultivate  the  crop  fre- 
quently and  carefully,  thus  securing  such  vigorous  and 
luxuriant  growth  that  the  losses  by  cabbage-lice  will  be 
insignificant. 

INSECT  ENEMIES   OF   PLANT-LICE. 

The  insect  enemies  of  the  plant-lice  are  legion,  else 
they  would  devour  every  green  living  thing  upon  the 
earth.  Some  of  these  enemies  are  enumerated  below. 
One  or  two  of  the  species  of  lady-birds  may  be  confined 
to  other  plant-lice  than  the  Aphis  brassicw.  The  lady- 
birds, both  in  the  perfect  and  larval  state,  feed  upon 
little  else  than  plant-lice.  Of  these  there  are: 

First. — The  Nine-spotted  Lady-bird  (CoccinellaS-nota- 
ta).  Nearly  round,  brick-red,  with  nine  black  spots. 

Second. — The  Two-spotted  Lady-bird  (Coccinella  M- 
punctata).  Similar  to  No.  1,  smaller,  with  two  black  spots. 

Third. — The  Spotted  Lady-bird  (Megilla  maculata). 
Imported  from  Europe.  Pink,  with  large  black  spots. 

Fourth. — The  Thirteen-spotted  Lady-bird  (Hippo- 
damia  13-punctata):  Brick-red,  with  thirteen  black  spots. 

Fifth. — The  Trim  Lady-bird  (Cycloneda  sanguined). 
It  has  no  black  spots. 

Sixth. — The  Convergent  Lady-bird  (Hippodamia  con- 
vergens).  Deep  orange-red,  marked  with  black  and  white. 

Seventh. — The  Fifteen-spotted  Mysia  (Mysia  15- 
punctatd).  From  light  gray  to  chestnut-brown,  with 
fifteen  black  spots. 

Eighth. — The  Twice-stabbed  Lady-bird  (CMlocorus 
Uvulnerus}.  Highly  polished  black,  with  two  red  spots. 


160  TRUCK-FABMIKG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

Besides  these,  there  are  many  less  common  kinds. 

Prominent  among  the  enemies  of  the  plant-lice  are 
the  larvae  of  the  Golden-eyed  and  Lace- winged  flies, 
called  Aphis-lions. 

Other  enemies  are  the  larvae  of  Syrphus-flies,  somewhat 
resembling  a  leech  in  shape.  Besides  heing  preyed  upon 
by  all  these  insects,  the  plant-lice  are  subject  to  several 
genera  of  tiny  parasites  included  in  the  genus  Aphidius. 


Fig.  31.— HARLEQUIN  CABBAGE  BUG  (Strochia  histrionico). 
a,  Larva ;  6,  Pupa ;  c,  Eggs ;  d,  Perfect  Bug. 

They  have  mostly  black  bodies,  and  are  about  one-twen- 
tieth of  an  inch  in  length.  The  little  round,  plump, 
smooth  bodies  in  a  colony  of  aphides,  or  remaining  on 
the  leaf  of  a  plant  after  the  removal  of  the  colony  by 
other  enemies,  are  dead  parasitized  aphides  containing  the 
parasitic  pupa  of  an  ichneumon  fly. 

The  Harlequin-bug  made  its  appearance  in  Georgia, 
from  Mexico,  about  the  commencement  of  Mr.  Lincoln's 
first  presidency,  from  which  circumstances  it  received  the 
local  name  of  "  Lincoln-bug,"  by  which  it  is  still  known 
in  Southern  Georgia.  In  1867  it  had  reached  North 
Carolina. 

This  insect  winters  in  its  perfect  state,  and  the  first 


CABBAGE. 


161 


that  are  seen  in  spring  should  always  be  destroyed.  The 
larvse  puncture  and  suck  the  leaves  of  the  cabbage,  giving 
them  the  appearance  of  being  scorched.  Strange  to  say, 
while  this  insect  is  on  the  increase,  and  the  damage  it 
inflicts  considerable,  no  birds,  or  insect  enemies  seem  to 
prey  upon  it.  Probably,  in  good  time,  these  will  both 
present  themselves  for  the  feast,  when  its  conspicuous 
black,  yellow,  and  reddish  colorings  will  render  it  an  easy 
prey.  Hand-picking  in  the  egg,  larva,  and  perfect  state, 
is  the  only  remedy  yet  known. 

Two  of  the  true  bugs  are  sometimes  very  destructive 
to  the  cabbages  and  turnips.  The  False  Chinch-bug  and 
the  Tarnished  Plant-bug. 

The  False  Chinch-bug  (Nysius  destructor),  much 
resembles  the  true  Chinch-bug 
in  general  appearance,  but  that 
has  a  black  head  and  thorax, 
and  two  conspicuous  black 
spots  on  the  front  wings, 
while  in  this,  the  False-bug, 
the  color  is  more  uniform 
and  of  a  paler  tarnished  brown. 
The  two  insects  differ  in  their 
habits;  while  the  Chinch-bug 
confines  itself  to  the  grains  and  grasses,  this  feeds 
on  several  garden  plants  and  the  grape.  The  engrav- 
ing fig.  32,  gives  the  larva  at  b,  and  the  perfect  in- 
sect at  c.  This,  like  related  insects,  feeds  by  sucking  the 
juices  of  plants  by  means  of  its  beak,  causing  them  to 
wilt.  Like  the  Chinch-bug,  it  passes  the  winter  under 
weeds  and  rubbish,  and  clean  culture  with  the  burning  of 
all  trash  at  the  approach  or  winter,  will  aid  in  keeping 
it  in  subjection. 

The  Tarnished  Plant-bug  (Capsus  oUineatus),  fig. 
33,  in  its  general  color  is  dirty  yellow,  sometimes  green- 
ish, with  markings  of  dark  brown  or  black.  It  is  a  more 


Fig.   32.— FALSE  CHINCH-BUG 

(Nysiw  destructor.) 
ft,  Pupa ;  c,  Mature  Insect. 


162  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

general  feeder  than  the  preceding,  and  besides  plants 
in  the  vegetable  and  flower  garden,  it  attacks  vari- 
ous fruit  trees,  especially  when  these 
are  young.  The  principal  remedies 
thus  far  recommended  are  tobacco 
water  and  cresylic  soap.  The  insect 
is  very  fond  of  the  cabbage,  especially 
when  it  is  in  bloom,  and  it  has  been 
suggested  to  allow  a  patch  of  cabbages 
to  run  up  to  flower  in  order  to  attract 
the  insects  which  can  be  more  readily 
destroyed,  when  thus  assembled,  than 

Fig.  33.— TARNISHED         ,  J 

PLANT-BUG  (Capsus   when  scattered  over  a  wide  area. 

obiiwatus).  The    Ladj.birds   or   Lady-bugs,    in 

their  perfect  state  are  well-known  insects,  and  the  brief 
description  of  the  leading  species  here  given  will 
allow  them  to  be  recognized.     The  larval  form, 
in  which   they  are  so   useful  is   not   so  well 
known.      The    engraving  fig.  34,   gives   their 
general  appearance.     The  color  is  often  blue,  or 
lead  color,  with   orange  and    black  markings. 
They  are  remarkably  active  and  run  about  with 
great  rapidity,  as  they  feed  not  only  upon  plant  LA.RVA  OF 
lice  but  upon  other  insects.     The  one  repre-  (Ntppoda- 
sented  in  fig.  34,  is  the  larva  of  Hippodamiamiag^er- 
convergens,  and  has  done  good  service  in  keep- 
ing the  Colorado  Potato-bug  in  check,  by  feeding  upon 
its  soft  larvae. 


THE  CAULIFLOWER.  163 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


THE  CAULIFLOWER  (Brassica  oleracea  var.  Botrytis). 

Choufleur,  French;   Blumenkohl,   German;   Moeinkool,   Dutch;    Cavoli 
Jiori,  Italian  ;  and  Berza  florida,  Spanish. 

The  Cauliflower  is  the  most  curious,  most  delicate,  and 
most  valuable  member  of  the  genus  Brassica.  The  part 
used,  called  the  "curd,"  consists  of  the  undeveloped 
flower  buds,  with  their  stems,  etc.,  forming,  when  not 
too  much  expanded,  a  firm,  white,  compact  head. 

PROFITS   PER  ACRE. 

Of  the  various  crops  grown  by  the  truck-farmer,  this, 
when  all  the  peculiar  conditions  for  its  successful  culture 
are  present,  can  be  made  the  most  profitable.  Peter 
Henderson,  in  his  valuable  "Gardening  for  Profit,"  as- 
sures us  that  his  average  proceeds  from  an  acre,  through 
several  years,  had  been  fifteen  hundred  dollars,  and,  that 
in  one  very  favorable  season,  it  reached  nearly  three 
thousand  dollars  (ten  thousand  to  twelve  thousand  plants 
to  the  acre).  Two  years  ago,  the  New  York  "  Sun  "  re- 
ported as  exceptionally  high,  the  net  sales  of  two  barrels 
of  cauliflower,  in  prime  condition,  from  Cutchogue,  L. 
I.,  at  nineteen  dollars  each.  Some  of  my  own  crop  of 
last  year,  April  4th,  1882,  brought,  in  the  New  York 
market,  per  bushel  crate,  containing  an  average  of  twenty- 
two  heads  of  prime  quality,  but  not  very  large,  eight  dol- 
lars and  fifty  cents  gross,  or  seven  dollars  and  sixty  cents 
net.  That  portion  of  the  crop  shipped  in  crates  to  New 
York,  averaged,  for  the  first  quality  and  "culls,"  five 
dollars  and  sixty-five  cents  gross.  The  first,  shipped 


164  TKUCK-FAKMIKG   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

in  barrels,  March  25th,  containing  forty-two  No.  1,  and 
forty-seven  No.  2,  netted  twenty-four  dollars  and  seventy- 
five  cents  per  barrel. 

The  average  gross  sales  per  head  of  No.  1,  in  New 
York,  were  at  thirty-seven  and  nine-tenths  cents.  The 
average  gross  sales  per  head  of  No.  1,  in  Boston,  were  at 
thirty-seven  and  five-tenths  cents.  The  sales  by  another 
firm  were  not  quite  so  satisfactory. 

What  number  of  plants  to  the  acre,  under  favorable 
conditions,  he  may  be  able  to  nurse  up  to  the  production 
of  marketable  heads,  will,  of  course,  depend  upon  the 
gardener  himself. 

The  Cauliflower  is  considered  the  queen  among  vege- 
tables, and  the  supply  has  never  been  equal  to  the  de- 
mand, though  there  are  hundreds  of  acres  devoted  to  it 
on  Long  Island,  for  the  New  York  market.  As  seen 
from  the  prices  quoted  above,  this  vegetable  is  only  within 
the  command  of  persons  of  means.  Fortunately  for 
the  market  gardener,  there  are  many  who  think  as  did 
Dr.  Johnson:  "  Of  all  the  flowers  of  the  garden  give  me 
the  cauliflower." 

Besides  large  quantities  used  for  pickling,  etc.,  there 
were  marketed  from  Long  Island,  in  1879,  one  hundred 
thousand  pounds  of  cauliflower. 

LOCATION   AN^D   SOIL. 

The  cauliflower  can  never  become  a  vegetable  of  uni- 
versal cultivation,  for  the  reason,  that  it  will  not  succeed 
if  far  removed  from  the  moisture  and  the  saline  atmos- 
phere of  its  native  locality,  the  sea  coast,  unless,  in- 
deed, the  required  moisture  can  be  supplied  by  irriga- 
tion. Erfurt,  in  the  interior  of  Germany,  produces  per- 
haps the  finest  cauliflowers  of  the  European  Continent. 
They  are  grown  between  open  ditches,  or  small  canals, 
on  "  lands  "  so  narrow  as  to  admit  of  water  being  thrown 
by  hand  from  each  marginal  ditch  to  the  middle  of  each 


THE  CAULIFLOWER.  165 

"land."     In  watering,  a  scoop  attached  to  a  somewhat 
elastic  handle,  is  used,  thus  drenching  the  whole  crop. 

The  culture  is  often  impracticable  at  only  a  short  dis- 
tance from  a  favorable  location.  While  the  northern 
shore  of  Long  Island  is,  par  excellence,  the  cauli- 
flower garden  of  the  United  States;  the  southern 
shore  is  comparatively  unfit  for  its  growth.  On  the 
Peninsula  of  Florida,  there  must  bo  many  situations 
along  either  its  west  or  east  coast,  where  the  soil  being 
suitable,  this  vegetable  may  be  grown  with  great  success, 
and  it  is  strange  that  the  farmers  of  that  State  have  not 
yet  made  it  one  of  the  favorite  vegetables  for  shipment. 
It  ought  to  do  well  near  Norfolk,  but  the  farmers  there 
consider  it  a  troublesome  crop. 

Owing  to  the  heat  and  dry  ness  prevailing  during  the 
season  of  ripening,  the  seed  of  cauliflower  is  rarely  grown 
in  this  country,  but  is  imported  from  Europe.  One 
American  variety,  the  "  Snow  Ball,"  has  lately  been  highly 
recommended.  I  do  not  yet  know  it  sufficiently  to  either 
condemn  or  praise  it;  but  what  little  I  have  seen,  leads 
me  to  consider  it  a  small  leaved  "  Dwarf  Erfurt,"  from 
American  grown  seed. 

It  is  necessary,  even  in  a  greater  degree  than  with  the 
common  cabbage,  to  secure  seed  of  good  strain.  Though 
all  the  other  elements  of  success  may  be  present,  with 
seed  of  poor  quality,  failure  is  certain.  Instead  of  the 
beautiful,  snow  white  "curd,"  more  like  a  flower  in  its 
delicate  beauty  than  an  edible  vegetable,  the  green  leaves 
push  their  way  through  the  loose,  deformed  head,  or  the 
plant  grows  up  into  a  stalk  without  heading,  being  per- 
fectly unmarketable,  and  only  fit  for  cattle  feed. 

VARIETIES. 

As  in  the  case  of  cabbage,  a  crop  of  cauliflower  may  be 
grown  for  winter,  and  one  for  heading  in  spring,  and,  as 
with  cabbage,  success  with  the  winter  crop  is  most  uncer- 


1G6  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

tain.  Different  varieties  are  adapted  to  each  season. 
While  resistance  to  the  effects  of  cold  is  the  chief  requisite 
of  the  first,  ability  to  withstand  the  heat  is  a  necessity  for 
the  spring  crop.  The  "Algiers,"  the  variety  grown  so 
extensively  in  the  French  African  colony  for  the  winter 
supply  of  Europe  (whence  its  name),  is  a  good  sort  for 
the  winter  crop.  It  makes  an  enormous  plant,  and  forms 
a  large,  massive,  fine  white  head.  The  seed  is  sown,  like 
that  of  cabbages,  from  May  to  September;  but,  owing  to 
the  greater  susceptibility  of  cauliflower  to  heat,  it  is  even 


Fig.   85. — LENOKMAND   CAULIFLOWER. 

more  difficult  to  grow  the  plants.  Another  drawback  in 
this  latitude  is  the  liability  to  have  the  crop  killed  out 
by  freezing  about  the  time  it  commences  to  mature.  An 
amount  of  cold  several  degrees  above  that  injurious  to 
cabbage  will  kill  cauliflower  plants  outright. 

The  distance  apart  for  the  Algiers  and  other  bulky  va- 
rieties is  two  by  four  feet.  This  variety  is  recommended 
to  Florida  growers  for  a  winter  crop,  to  be  marketed  in 
February,  the  seeds  being  sown  early  in  September.  For  the 


THE  CAULIFLOWER.  167 

main,  or  shipping,  spring  crop,  the  early  dwarf  varieties, 
which  may  be  expected  to  mature  before  May,  that  is, 
before  the  weather  becomes  dry  and  hot*  are  the  kinds  to 
be  selected.  The  ' '  Very  Early  Dwarf  Erfurt,"  the  "Short- 
stemmed  Lenormand,"  and  "Early  Paris,"  in  the  order 
framed,  are  the  choice  varieties. 

The  plants  should,  like  cabbage  and  other  plants,  be 
put  out  dripping  wet, -about,  or  soon  after,  the  first  of 
January,  so  as  to  escape  the  severest  cold,  which,  in  the 
latitude  of  Savannah,  may  generally  be  looked  for  in  the 
latter  part  of  December.  The  seed  should  therefore  be 
sown  under  glass  in  cold  frames,  from  November  15th  to 
December  1st.  In  Florida,  of  course,  it  may  be  sown 
earlier,  and  the  plants  be  put  out  sooner,  as  there  is  little 
danger  to  be  anticipated  from  winter  killing. 

CULTIVATION. 

The  varieties  are  of  such  dwarfish  habit  (particularly 
is  this  so  with  the  Erfurt),  that  it  is  not  advisable  to  sow 
earlier  in  the  open  air,  and  to  prick  out  under  glass. 
When  of  a  sufficient  age  to  "  curd,"  if  growth  is  retarded, 
they  may  in  the  seed-bed  form  heads  no  larger  than  mar- 
bles. It  is,  therefore,  important  with  this  vegetable,  that 
the  plants  suffer  no  hindrance  or  stunting  in  growth,  but 
be  pushed  forward  from  the  start,  without,  however,  al- 
lowing them  to  become  spindling  or  too  delicate.  From 
eighteen  to  twenty-one  inches  in  the  rows,  and  these 
three  and  a  half  feet  apart  (seven  thousand  one  hundred 
and  eleven  to  eight  thousand  two  hundred  and  ninety- 
seven  plants  to  the  acre)  is  sufficient  distance  for  the 
early  varieties.  The  manure,  the  depth  and  kind  of 
preparation  of  the  soil,  and  the  cultivation  of  the  cauli- 
flower, are  identical  with  that  of  cabbage,  with  the  only 
difference,  that  the  former  perhaps  requires  a  little  more 
care,  and  will  certainly  reward  extra  attention. 


168  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

PROTECTING. 

,  Bright  sunshine  tans  or  tarnishes  the  snowy  whiteness 
of  the  "  curd,"  deteriorating  its  quality.  As  soon,  there- 
fore, as  the  head  commences  to  be  visible,  it  should  be 
protected  from  the  light,  either  by  tying  up  all  the  large 
leaves  over  the  head,  or  by  pinning  two  of  them  together 
by  a  little  stick.  Protection  is  given  more  expedition  sly 
and  the  light  excluded  by  using  one  of  the  larger  leaves, 
torn  from  the  plant  to  cover  the  "  curd  "  closely,  tucking  it 
between  the  head  and  surrounding  leaves.  If  there  are 
any  caterpillars  of  the  cabbage-butterfly  on  the  plant, 
they  are  likely  to  be  found  on  the  lower  surfaces  of  the 
covering.  When  the  cutting  of  the  crop  has  been  com- 
menced, leaves  for  covering  are  to  be  taken  from  plants 
already  cut.  If  the  protecting  leaf  has  been  carefully 
adjusted,  the  operation  need  rarely  be  done  more  than 
once,  as  the  heads  mature  three  or  four  days  after  they 
become  plainly  visible.  The  several  lobes  forming  the 
head  should  not  be  allowed  to  separate,  or  the  head  to 
become  loose  and  expanded,  before  cutting  for  market; 
solidity  being  one  of  the  requisites  of  good  quality. 

CUTTING   AND    PACKING. 

When  the  ' '  curd  "  is  mature,  the  leaves  will  be  seen  to 
spread  out.  The  proper  instrument  for  cutting  is  a 
strong  sharp  knife,  or  small  hatchet.  A  couple  only  of 
the  larger  leaves  are  left,  which  are  folded  over  the  head 
for  protection  against  bruising  in  the  packages.  Heads 
less  than  four  inches  in  diameter,  those  tanned  by  the 
sun,  or  of  an  "  off  color  "  from  any  other  cause,  or  blem- 
ished by  crickets,  cut-worms,  or  cabbage-worms,  or  too 
much  expanded,  should  be  classed  as  culls,  and  packed 
separately.  If  white  and  compact,  a  small  size  is  less 
objectionable  than  bad  appearance.  Each  "  curd,"  at  least 
of  the  first  quality,  should  be  covered  by  a  piece  of 


THE  CUCUMBER.  169 

smooth,  soft,  but  tough  white  paper,  which  will  admit  of 
being  tucked  between  the  head  and  the  leaves  without 
tearing.  The  heads  should  be  packed  evenly  and  snugly 
in  layers  in  barrels  or  crates,  as  the  case  may  be.  Each 
layer  may  be  separated  from  the  other  by  a  piece  of  brown 
paper;  if  a  barrel  is  used,  the  package  should  be  thor- 
oughly ventilated.  During  cool  weather,  cauliflower 
may  be  safely  shipped  in  barrels  or  barrel  crates;  but  as 
soon  as  the  weather  becomes  warm,  the  usual  bushel 
crate  is  better,  as  affording  a  smaller  mass  of  material  to 
engender  heat.  In  New  York  and  Philadelphia,  cauli- 
flower is  sold  by  the  package,  and  in  Boston  by  the 
dozen. 

INSECTS. 

Insects  infest  the  cauliflower  and  cabbage  alike,  and 
the  remedies  are  the  same  in  each  case. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 


THE   CUCUMBER  (Cucumis  sativus.) 

C&ucombre,   French;    Gurke,  German;  Eomkommer,    Dutch;    Citrindloy 
Italian  ;  Pepino  or  Cohombro,  Spanish. 

The  Cucumber  is  one  of  the  earliest  known  vegetables. 
Moses  mentions  it  as  abundant  in  Egypt.  "We  remem- 
ber the  fish,  which  we  did  eat  in  Egypt  freely;  the  cu- 
cumbers, and  the  melons,  and  the  leeks,  and  the  onions, 
and  the  garlic." — Numbers  xi:5. 

A  native  of  the  East  Indies,  it  was  introduced  into 
England  in  1573.  By  means  of  thin  plates  of  talc  or 
mica  (specularia — plates  of  lapis  specularis),  Pliny  tells 
8 


170  TRUCK-FARMIM  At  THE  SOUTH. 

us,  the  Roman  emperor  Tiberius,  who  was  fond  of  cucum- 
bers, had  them  throughout  the  year.  The  forcing  con- 
sisted in  growing  the  cucumbers  in  boxes  or  baskets  of 
earth,  protected  in  coid  weather  by  these  plates.  The 
cucumber  is  a  vegetable  that  is  very  easily  grown,  and 
is  so  productive  when  properly  manured  and  cultivat- 
ed; it  is  so  universally  popular  at  the  North,  and  is 
consumed  so  largely,  that  when  the  season  permits  the 
marketing  of  the  greater  part  of  the  produce,  it  is  one  of 
the  best  paying  crops.  One  of  the  drawbacks  of  truck- 
farming  is,  that  whether  the  entire  product  of  a  crop  is 
harvested  or  not,  as  soon  as  the  same  vegetable  matures 
at  a  point  farther  North,  it  comes  into  market  in  a  condi- 
tion fresher  and  more  acceptable  to  the  trade,  and,  there- 
fore, excludes  from  profitable  sale  all  shipments  of  the 
article  from  the  more  southern  and  distant  points.  Thus, 
when  the  Savannah  cucumbers  are  in,  those  from  Flor- 
ida will  be  thrust  out  of  the  market;  and  the  same  fate 
awaits  those  from  Georgia,  as  soon  as  the  Norfolk  crop 
matures.  The  season  of  1882  was  a  fortunate  one  for  the 
Savannah  growers,  nearly  the  entire  yield  of  cucumbers 
having  been  marketed.  While  from  two  hundred  to 
three  hundred  crates  may  be  considered  a  fair  crop;  one 
farmer  gathered  one  thousand  three  hundred  and  fifty 
crates  from  about  an  acre  and  a  half,  or  nine  hundred 
crates  per  acre,  on  very  richly  manured  ground. 

VARIETIES. 

The  only  variety  grown  for  shipment  is  the  "  Improved 
White  Spine."  In  cucumber  cultivation,  seeds  of  home 
growth  may  be  used.  Seeds  of  more  than  one  year  old 
will  be  more  productive,  and  run  less  to  vine,  than  fresh 
seeds.  They  may  be  sown  in  the  vicinity  of  Savannah  ac- 
cording to  season,  about  March  1st  to  the  15th,  and 
earlier  or  later,  respectively,  south  or  north  of  that  lati- 


THE  CUCUMBER.  171 

tude.     In  the  middle  of  Florida,  it  may  be  safe  to  plant 
any  time  in  January, 

SOIL  SOWING   AND   CULTIVATION. 

The  land  best  adapted  to  the  cucumber  is  a  moist, 
warm,  light,  sandy  loam;  although  sandy  soil  is  not  so 
productive,  the  finest  and  earliest  cucumbers  may  be 
grown  on  it  if  highly  and  properly  fertilized.  *  A  manure 
rich  in  nitrogen  will  produce  fruit  of  the  de- 
sirable dark-green  color.  The  usual  method 
of  planting  cucumbers  is  in  hills,  either  four 
or  five,  or  even  six  feet  apart  each  way,  ac- 
cording to  the  nature  and  fertility  of  the  soil. 
The  land  being  properly  plowed  and  har- 
rowed, furrows  are  run  by  the  plow,  crossing 
each  other  at  right  angles.  At  each  crossing 
one  or  two  shovelfuls  of  good  stable  manure, 
or  compost,  or  failing  these,  an  equivalent 
quantity  of  any  other  good  fertilizer  is  inti- 
mately mixed  with  the  soil,  and  a  hill,  flat  on 
top.  and  a  little  elevated  above  the  general  WHITE-SPINE 

£  •  J  *j.l.    xl.       1.  T  £  CUCUMBER. 

surface,  is  made  with  the  hoe.  In  a  furrow 
one-half  to  one  inch  deep,  made  by  the  hand  across 
the  middle  of  the  hill,  sow  from  ten  to  fifteen  seeds. 
A  week  later,  whether  any  of  the  seeds  first  planted 
are  up  or  not,  a  second  sowing  is  made,  at  a  sufficient 
distance  from  the  first  to  avoid  disturbing  it,  and 
always  on  the  same  side  of  it.  A  week  later  still,  a  third 
sowing  may  be  made  on  the  other  side  of  the  first.  Should 
a  frost  kill  the  growing  plants  of  the  first  seeding,  before 
those  of  the  second  are  up,  plants  from  the  second  may 
be  made  available.  When  the  plants  are  large  enough 
and  danger  of  frost  has  passed,  thin  the  plants  to  two  or 


*  None  of  the  Cncurbitacese,  which  comprises  Cucumbers,  Squashes,  Melons, 
etc.,  should  be  planted  on  land  having  just  borne  a  crop  of  Cabbages,  for  tear 
of  the  soil  being  infested  with  the  larva-  of  the  12-epotted  Squash-beetle. 


TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

three  in  the  hill.  If  the  seed  comes  up  well,  and  the 
plants  are  crowding  each  other,  another  partial  thinning 
may  be  necessary.  I  prefer  to  manure,  as  for  cabbage, 
in  the  furrow,  and  to  drill  in  the  seed  on  beds  six  feet 
apart,  and  to  thin  so  as  to  leave  the  plants  finally  about 
twelve  inches  apart  in  the  row;  leaving  single  plants, 
three  sowings  being  made  as  before.  At  the  first  thin- 
ning, the  soil  should  be  drawn  by  the  hoe  to  the  stems 
up  to  the  seed  leaves.  The  earth  is  to  be  kept  loose  and 
clean  between  the  rows  by  plow  and  cultivator,  and  be- 
tween the  plants  by  the  hoe,  until  the  vines  have  taken 
possession  of  the  ground.  If  the  plant  is  stopped  when  it 
has  two  rough  leaves  beyond  the  second,  that  is,  if  the 
end  of  the  vine  is  pinched  off,  lateral  fruiting  branches 
will  be  emitted,  which  will  be  early  in  bearing  and  more 
productive  than  the  main  vine.  This  operation  of  stop- 
ping is  rarely  practised  in  extensive  planting. 

GATHERING  AND   PACKING. 

If  the  fruits  are  cut  instead  of  being  pulled  off,  there 
will  be  no  injury  to  the  vine;  nor  will  the  cucumber  wilt 
so  rapidly.  A  transverse  section  of  the  fruit  should  be 
nearly  round,  before  the  cucumber  is  picked;  but  quite 
green  and  perfect  in  shape.  None  of  imperfect  form, 
short,  round  and  contracted  at  the  flower  end,  or  with 
the  slightest  tendency  to  turn  yellow,  or  large  and  over- 
grown, should  be  shipped,  as  they  will  affect  the  market 
value  of  the  whole  package.  The  cucumbers  should  be 
carefully  laid  in  the  crates,  or  be  well  shaken  down,  as 
directed  in  the  chapter  on  "  Packing,"  and  the  crate  be 
over-full  when  nailed  up 

SEED  SAVING. 

The  White-spined  cucumber  becomes  white  instead  of 
yellow,  when  ripe.  The  whitest,  largest  and  longest 
should  be  selected  for  seed.  Cut  them  lengthwise  into 


THE   CUCUMBER. 


173 


halves,  and  take  out  the  seeds  and  inner  pulp  by  hand, 
dropping  them  into  a  barrel  or  pail.  The  mass  should 
be  stirred  daily  and  allowed  to  remain  four  or  five  days, 
to  enable  fermentation  to  remove  the  gelatinous  matter 
which  surrounds  the  seeds.  These  are  then  washed  out 
in  several  waters,  thoroughly  dried,  and  stored  away  in 

bags. 

INSECTS. 

The  insects  which  infest  the  cucumber  are: 

j^st. — The  Cucumber  Flea-beetle  (ffalticacucumeris). 

Second. — The  Striped  Cucumber-beetle  (Diabrotica 
vittata). 

Third. — The  Twelve-spotted  Squash-beetle  or  Striped- 
bug  (Diabrotica  12-punctata). 

Fourth. — The  Pickle- worm  (Phacellura  nitidalis). 

Fifth. — The  Grass-worm  (Laphrygma  frugiperdd). 

The  little  flea-beetle,  like  its  kindred  on  the  cabbage 


Fig.  37. 

CUCUMBER 
FLEA-BEETLE 

(HaJtica  cu- 
cumeris.} 


IR  I 


Fig.  38.— STRIPED 

CUCUMBER-BEETLE 

(Diabrotica  vittata.) 


Back.  Side. 

Fig.  39.— LARVA  OF  STRIPED 
CUCUMBER-BEETLE. 


and  other  plants,  may  be  driven  off  by  freshly-slaked 
lime  or  soot. 

The  Striped-bug  appears  early  in  the  spring  as  a  com- 


174  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

plete  insect,  destroying  the  young  leaves.  If  numerous, 
these  insects  may  be  poisoned  by  Paris  green,  one  part  to 
ten  of  flour,  before  they  can  deposit  their  eggs  for  a  new 
brood,  of  which  there  are  three  at  the 
South.  After  hatching  from  the  egg,  the 
duration  of  its  larval  existence  is  about 
four  weeks,  during  which  time  its  injury 
Fig.  40.'  to  tne  roots  of  plants,  by  boring  into  them, 
TWELVE-SPOTTED  may  ke  considerable.  The  past  season, 

SQUASH-BEETLK  J.  r 

(Diabrotica  13-    an  insect  was  reported  to  have  been  very 
punctata.)       destructive  to  cucumber  vines  near  Savan- 
nah, by  injuring  the  roots.     From  the  description  it 
must  have  been  the  larva  of  the  DialroUca,  or  it  may 


Fig.  41.— PICKLE- WORM  (Phacettura  mtiddlis). 

have  been  the  true  wire-worm — the  larva  of  small  snap- 
ping beetles;  but  most  probably  the  former.  It  lias  been 
said  in  a  recent  work,  "  Of  all 
the  multifarious  remedies  pro- 
posed against  the  attacks  of  this 
insect,  there  is  none  so  effectual, 
or  so  cheap  in  the  end,  as  in- 
closing the  young  vines  in  boxes, 
which  are  open  at  the  bottom, 
Fig.  42.— MOTH  OP  PICKLE-  and  covered  with  millinet  on  the 
top.  Such  boxes  are  made  at  a 

trivial  cost,  and  if  properly  stored  away  each  season  after 
use,  will  last  for  many  years." 

The  private  gentleman,  having  half  a  dozen  cucumber 
vines    in    his    garden,    may  avail    himself  of    such  a 


THE  EGG-PLANT.  175 

remedy,  but  the  farmer,  who  fails  to  protect  his  crop  by 
destroying  the  first  insects  by  poison,  in  case  of  their 
visitation  in  devastating  numbers,  and  to  whom  the 
alternative  is  offered,  would  probably  give  up  the  cucum- 
ber to  Diabrotica,  and  betake  himself  to  another  crop, 
rather  than  use  from  forty  thousand  to  eighty  thousand 
boxes  for  the  protection  of  from  six  to  twelve  acres. 
The  third  of  the  beetles  infesting  the  cucumber,  the 


Fig.  43.— GRASS-WORM 
(Laphrygma  frugiptrda.)  Fig.  44. — LARVA  OF  GRASS-WORI 

twelve-spotted   Diabrotica  is  not  so  destructive  as  the 
former  species. 

The  cucumber  is  the  regular  food  plant  of  the  Pickle- 
worm  (Phacellura  nitidalis)  while  the  more  omnivorous 
Grass-worm  (Laphrygma  frugiperda)  only  occasionally 
feeds  upon  it.  Both  these  lepidopterous  insects  become 
numerous  too  late  in  the  season  to  affect  the  crop  of  the 
truck-farmer  seriously. 


CHAPTEE   XVIII. 

THE    EGG-PLANT,    OR    "GUINEA    CQUASH." 
(Solatium  melongena.) 

Aubergine,  French  ;  Merpflanze,  German  ;   and  Melanzana,  Italian. 

The  Egg-plant  is  of  tropical  origin,  and  was  introduced 
into  England  from  Africa  in  1597.  It  derives  its  common 
name  from  a  small  white  variety  which  is  similar  in  shape 
and  appearance  to  the  egg  of  a  goose. 


176 


TRUCK-FAKMIKG   AT  THE   SOUTH. 


Only  a  very  few  years  since,  the  demand  for  egg-plants 
(as  the  fruit  is  called),  was  so  limited  in  the  New  York 
market,  that  but  a  few  could  be  sold,  and  it  did  not  pay 
to  plant  a  crop  for  shipment.  This  was  probably  in  part 
owing  to  the  fact,  that  the  cultivation  of  this  plant  at 
the  North  is  attended  with  trouble,  in  consequence  of 
its  tenderness,  and  a  successful  crop  is  doubtful.  Lat- 
terly a  more  general  taste  for  the  vegetable  seems  to  have 

been  developed,  and  its 
consumption  has  greatly 
increased.  As  late  as  July 
8th,  last  (and  egg-plant 
had  been  in  the  Savan- 
nah market  from  Florida 
since  January),  a  ship- 
ment of  my  own,  averag- 
ing about  sixty-five  fruits 
to  the  barrel,  sold  in  the 
New  York  market  at  six 
dollars  per  barrel.  The 
farmers  of  the  southern 
part  of  Florida,  from 
Tampa  to  Key  West,  be- 
ing exempt  from  frost, 
may  produce  such  tropi- 
cal vegetables  at  will,  as  far  as  season  is  concerned. 
On  Dec.  let  of  last  year,  egg-plants  and  tomatoes 
were  mature  afc  Clear  Water.  The  only  variety  cultivated 
for  market  is  the  "New  York  Purple  Improved."  This 
being  a  tropical  fruit,  or  berry,  it  must  reach  its  greatest 
development  and  mature  its  seed  most  perfectly  at  the 
South,  for  which  reason  it  is  not  only  possible,  but  ad- 
visable to  use  seed  of  home  growth  in  preference  to  that 
produced  at  the  North. 

The  seed  and  young  plants  require  more  of  a  tropical 
heat  (65°  to  70°)  for  their  germination  and  continued  ; 


THE  EGG-PLANT.  177 

healthy  growth,  than  any  other  crop,  and  should,  there- 
fore, be  sown  by  themselves  under  glass  in  cold  frames. 
After  sowing,  the  bed  should  be  well  watered  and  the 
glass  placed  on,  and  not  removed  until  the  seed  is  up. 
In  case  of  hot  sunshine  before  germination,  the  sash 
should  be  partially  shaded.  If  ifc  is  contemplated  to 
prick  out  the  plants  into  other  frames,  the  sowing  may 
be  as  early  as  the  middle  of  January;  otherwise  ten  or 
fifteen  days  later.  The  management  while  under  glass 
is  about  the  same  as  with  other  tender  plants,  with  the 
exception  that  they  require  more  careful  exclusion  of 
cold  air,  and  have  more  frequent  protection  from  slight 
variations  of  temperature  by  the  glass,  than  the  tomato, 
pepper,  etc. ,  and  they  will  bear  a  greater  degree  of  heat 
without  being  drawn.  No  vegetable  with  which  I  am 
acquainted,  can  withstand  drouth  better  than  the  egg- 
plant, which  bears  and  matures  its  fruit  under  a  degree  of 
heat  and  dryness  that  would  be  fatal  to  other  crops.  If 
there  be  a  sufficiency  of  decayed  vegetable  matter  in  the 
soil,  this  crop  may  be  allotted  to  the  sandiest  part  of  the 
farm.  If  planted  in  low,  although  thoroughly  drained, 
land,  the  plants  are  apt  to  die  off  about  the  time  they 
commence  to  bloom  or  bear,  a  peculiarity  more  or  less 
common  to  all  the  Solanum  family.  To  mature  early 
fruit  of  the  size  and  quality  required  by  the  trade,  a 
shovelful  or  two  of  fermented  stable  manure,  or  compost, 
should  be  mixed  in  each  hill.  The  hills  should  be  two  and 
a  half  by  four  feet  apart.  The  cultivation  is  about  the 
same  as  that  of  any  other  hill  crop.  The  earth  should  be 
slightly  drawn  to  the  stems  during  the  hoeing,  not  suf- 
ficiently, however,  to  touch  any  of  the  lower  branches. 
The  plow  and  horse-hoe,  once  each,  run  between  the  rows, 
and  two  hoeings  should  be  sufficient  for  the  crop  in  light 
unbaked  land. 

To  cut  through  the  tough  stems,  without  disturbing 
the  plants,  a  thin-bladed,  sharp  knife,  or  a  pair  of  nippers 


178  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE  SOUTH. 

is  necessary.  To  be  marketable  at  good  prices,  the  fruit 
should  be  well  grown,  weighing  from  one  to  three  pounds 
but  not  old,  nor  light  colored  and  tough;  small  ones 
are  not  readily  salable.  They  are  to  be  carefully  handled 
to  avoid  bruising  and  injuring  the  gloss.  Shorten  the 
stems  to  about  half  an  inch  and  wrap  each  in  paper.  It 
is  then  to  be  firmly  and  evenly  packed  in  crates,  or  in 
well  ventilated  double-headed  barrels.  The  Flea-beetle 
frequently  attacks  the  plants  when  young,  for  which  the 
usual  remedy  of  lime  or  soot  is  applicable,  but  rarely 
necessary. 

The  large  green  Tomato- worm  is  sometimes  found  on 
the  egg-plant.  Should  these,  the  Tortoise-beetle  ( Cassi- 
da  Texana)  or  the  false  Colorado-beetle  (Doryphora  junc- 
ta),  already  mentioned,  ever  become  destructive,  Paris 
green  might  be  applied  before  the  fruit,  or  berry,  is 
formed. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


KALE,  BORECOLE,  OR  SPROUTS  (Brassica  oZeracea— var. 
sabellica.) 

Ckouvert,  French  ;  Kraushohl  or  BrjunkoM,  German;  Bxrerikool,  Dutch; 
Cavolo  aperto,  Italian;  Col,  Spanish. 

Kale  is  a  variety  of  the  cabbage  of  great  excellence  for 
the  table.  It  is  distinguished  from  the  other  varieties 
by  its  open  growth  and  its  more  or  less  curled  or 
wrinkled  leaves.  It  is  the  most  hardy  of  all,  and  with- 
stands a  severe  degree  of  cold;  indeed,  it  is  not  consid- 
ered to  have  reached  the  perfection  of  flavor  and  tender- 
ness, until  it  has  been  frozen. 

Among  the  many  varieties  of  kale  some  are  dwarfish 
in  habit,  while  others  grow  from  four  to  five  feet  high, 


KALE,  BORECOLE,  OR  SPROUTS. 


179 


Kale  is  rarely  grown  at  the  extreme  South  for  the 
Northern  markets,  its  extensive  cultivation  being  con- 
fined to  Norfolk,  Va.  The  price  in  the  New  York 
market  rarely  exceeds  two  dollars  and  twenty-five  cents 
per  barrel.  The  varieties  cultivated  are:  a  local  one, 
called  the  "Blue  Curled/'  and  the  "Green  Curled 
Scotch;"  the  former  by  far  the  most  extensively. 

The  preparation  and  character  of  the  soil,  quantity 
and  kind  of  manure,  and 
the  cultivation  of  the  crop 
muit  be  similar  to  that  of 
the  other  varieties  of  cab- 
bage. The  "Blue  Curled". 
is  sown  from  August  10th 
to  September  15th,  at  Nor- 
folk, in  drills  thirty  inches 
apart,  at  the  rate  of  a 
pound  and  a  half  of  seed 
to  the  acre;  the  plants  are 
eventually  thinned  to  a 
stand  of  from  four  to  eight 
inches  in  the  row.  The 
"Scotch  Curled,"  to  a 
much  smaller  extent,  is 
sown  in  seed-beds  early  in 
August,  and  transplanted 
in  September  from  eight  to  ten  inches  apart  in  the  row. 

The  crop  is  cut  for  shipment  in  March.  The  size  of 
the  plants,  when  cut,  varies  from  six  inches  to  two  feet 
across,  and,  therefore,  the  number  which  will  fill  a  barrel 
varies  greatly.  It  must  be  very  firmly  packed  in  well- 
Ventilated  barrels,  as  with  the  best  care,  it  will  shrink  in 
consequence  of  its  loose  growth.  It  is  subject  to  the 
same  insects  as  the  cabbage,  and,  sown  as  it  is  in  the 
open  field  in  the  fall,  is  affected  by  the  young  cut- worms. 
See  chapter  on  "Insects." 


Fig.  46. -KALE. 


180  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE  SOUTH. 


CHAPTER    XX. 


LETTUCE    (Lactuca  saliva). 

Laitue,  French  ;  Garten-salat,  German  ;  Latuw,  Dutch  ;  Lattuga,  Italian  ; 
Lechuga,  Spanish. 

The  Lettuce  is  a  hardy  annual  which  was  first  culti- 
vated in  England  in  1562,  but  whence  it  was  introduced 
is  not  known. 

Owing  to  its  freedom  from  insect  depredations  (exclu- 
sive of  the  cut-worm),  its  large  consumption,  and  the 
ease  with  which  it  can  be  grown,  lettuce  is  one  of  the 
most  important  crops  of  the  Northern  farm-gardener, 
notwithstanding  the  fact,  that,  of  late  years,  it  has  be- 
come subject  to  a  disease.  In  New  York,  the  winter  and 
very  early  spring  markets  are  supplied  from  hot-beds,  in 
which  it  is  grown  in  and  near  Boston,  where  a  specialty 
is  made  of  this  vegetable.  In  consequence  of  this  ex- 
tensive supply  of  superior  and  fresh  stock,  the  more 
wilted  condition  of  shipments  from  the  South  renders 
the  cultivation  of  it  here  unprofitable.  It  is  grown,  how- 
ever, to  a  considerable  extent  at  Norfolk. 

A  good  sort  should  form  a  solid  and  large  head.  The 
varieties  used  at  Norfolk  are:  "  White  Cabbage  "  and  the 
' 'Boston  Market,"  or  "  Tennis  Ball,"  the  former  for  open 
field  culture,  and  the  latter  under  glass. 

The  seed  is  sown  under  glass  in  September,  the  plants 
put  five  or  six  inches  apart,  and  the  crop  is  ready  for 
market  in  February  and  March. 

The  trouble  with  this  crop  is  the  liability  of  the  plants 
to  damp  off  under  glass. 

For  the  open  field,  the  seed  is  sown  about  the  middle 
of  September  in  a  bed,  and  not  quite  as  deep  as  cabbage 
geeds,  the  plants  are  transferred  to  flat  beds,  setting  then? 


THE  OSTIOtf.  181 

about  nine  inches  apart  each  way,  to  be  cultivated  en- 
tirely by  the  hoe,  or  in  rows  eighteen  inches  apart,  the 
plants  standing  eight  inches  in  the  row,  which  will  ad- 
mit the  use  of  a. narrow  cultivator  between  the  rows. 

This  crop  is  marketable  in  April. 

Any  well-drained  soil,  made  fine  and  mellow,  and  well 
manured  will  produce  good  lettuce. 

After  cleaning,  or  trimming  the  heads  of  soiled,  or 
discolored  leaves,  they  are  firmly  packed  for  shipment  in 
crates,  barrels  being  unfit  for  this  crop. 

MUSKMELOK,  or  CANTALOUPE.  See  additional  chap- 
ters, pages  251,  252. 

OKEA,  or  GUMBO.     See  additional  chapters,  page  253. 


CHAPTER    XXI. 
THE  ONION  (Allium  Cepa). 

Ognon,  French;  Zwiebel,  German  ;  Uijen,  Dutch  ;  Cipolla,  Italian  ;  Cebolla, 
Spanish ;  Alho,  Portuguese. 

The  alliaceous  esculents  are  of  great  antiquity  and  of 
universal  cultivation  in  every  civilized  country,  some  na- 
tionalities preferring  one  variety,  and  others  a  different 
one.  The  same  genus  includes  the  Leek  (Allium  Porrum), 
the  Chives  (A.  ScUcenopramm) ,  the  Garlic  (A.  sativum), 
the  Shallot  (A.  Ascalonicum),  and  the  Rocambole  (A. 
Scorodoprasum).  The  onion  (Allium  Cepa)  is  the  only 
species  with  which  the  truck-farmer  has  any  concern. 
There  are  many  varieties  of  the  onion,  only  a  few  of 
which  are  grown  for  the  Northern  markets. 

ANALYSIS. 

According  to  Prof.  C.  A.  Goessman,  a  crop  of  foul 
hundred  and  forty-two  bushels  contained: 


TRTJCK-FABMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

Potassium  oxide 38.51  Ibs. 

Sodium  oxide 1.90 

Magnesium  oxide 3.60 

Calcium  oxide 8.20 

Sesqui-oxide  of  iron 0.58 

Silicic  acid 3.33 

Phosphoric  acid 1 15.80 

Sulphuric  acid 29.81 

Nitrogen 48.63 

The  peculiar  characteristic  odor  is  due  to  a  volatile  or- 
ganic  compound  containing  sulphur. 

Onions  are  used  medicinally  as  stimulants,  diuretics, 
and  anthelmintics  (worm  medicines).  Boiled  or  roasted, 
they  form  emollient  poultices.  The  fresh  root  irritates 
or  reddens  the  skin,  and  the  expressed  juice  is  sometimes 
used  in  ear-ache  and  in  rheumatism. 

It  has  generally  been  held,  but  erroneously,  that  the 
onion  could  not  be  successfully  grown  from  the  seed,  at 
the  South,  and  that,  below  about  the  fortieth  degree,  the 
dry  heat  of  our  summers  would  dwarf  the  bulbs.  Egypt 
and  the  Barbary  States  produce,  perhaps,  the  finest 
onions  in  the  world,  several  of  the  largest  varieties  having 
originated  in  Tripoli.  Large  quantities  are  annually 
exported  from  Portugal  and  Spain.  The  opinion  pre- 
vails in  Germany  that  the  seed,  at  least  of  some  varieties, 
will  deteriorate,  unless  of  southern  growth;  and  those 
of  the  Madeira  onion,  used  in  Bermuda  for  the  crop  so 
popular  in  our  Northern  markets,  are  grown  in  the 
south  of  France.  I  have  grown  most  varieties  of  the 
onion  successfully  for  the  past  twenty-two  years,  having 
produced,  one  season,  the  "Giant  Rocca"  at  the  rate  of 
ten  hundred  and  fifty  bushels  per  acre.  The  usual  yield 
is  from  three  hundred  to  eight  hundred  bushels.  At  no 
time  of  the  year  are  the  Northern  markets  entirely  bare 
of  this  indispensable  vegetable,  some  variety  in  its  green 
or  matured  state  being  procurable. 

The  aim  of  the  Southern  grower  should  be  to  slip  his 
crop  into  the  market  at  a  time  when  the  supply  from 
other  sections  is  most  deficient.  The  first  matured  bulbs 


THE  OtftOST. 


183 


in  the  spring  found  in  the  Northern  markets  are  the  Ber- 
muda grown  ' (  Madeira  "  onions.  Although  it  might  be 
possible  to  grow  as  fine  onions  in  Florida  from  autumn- 
sown  seed,  the  attempt  to  compete  with  Bermuda  onions 
for  favor  would  seem 
fruitless  at  present.  South 
Florida  might  even  antici- 
pate the  Bermuda  crop. 
The  next  onions,  other 
than  from  this  section  and 
from  Florida,  offered  in 
market,  are  the  "Potato 
onions,"  grown  near  Nor- 
folk and  in  Maryland. 
Southern  onions  will  be 
apt  to  bring  the  most  sat- 
isfactory prices  about  the 
time  the  supply  from 
Bermuda  is  becoming  ex- 
hausted, which  occurs 
about  June  15th.  While 
no  variety  of  Southern- 
grown  onions  will  keep  Fig.  47.-owoH-««4HT  BOOOA." 

during  the  winter,  should  they  ripen  a  little  premature- 
ly, they  may  be  preserved  sufficiently  long  to  allow  the 
shipments  to  be  so  timed  as  to  meet  this  demand. 

VARIETIES   A^D   SEED. 

Of  more  than  one  hundred  varieties,  the  common 
"Red Wethersfield "  and  "Yellow  Danvers"  are  the  best 
keepers.  The  beautiful  white  "Italian  Queen"  is  the 
earliest  and  surest,  but  is  too  small.  The  "  Giant  Eocca  " 
makes  an  enormous  yield,  but  is  too  large  for  market. 
The  now  popular  "  Globe  Madeira"  will  be  the  best  to 
succeed  the  Bermuda  crop  of  the  same  variety. 

Of  no  other  vegetable,  save  the  cauliflower,  is  it  so  im- 


184  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE  SOUTH. 

portant  to  have  a  good  strain  of  seed.  If  saved  from  bulbs 
of  objectionable  form,  or  imperfect  development,  seal- 
lions,  instead  of  the  desirable  globular  onions,  will  be 
the  result. 

No  seed  older  than  of  the  previous  crop  should  be  used, 
as  it  rarely  retains  vitality  over  one  year;  it  is  also  well 
to  put  it  to  the  preliminary  test  recommended  in  the 
chapter  on  "  Seeds,"  in  order  to  gauge  the  drill  in  accord- 
ance with  the  percentage  of  sound  seed.  It  will  germi- 
nate in  three  or  four  days,  if  kept  warm  and  moist.  The 
seed  is  frequently  soaked  from  one  to  four  days,  but  I 
cannot  recommend  the  practice.  If  it  is  found  to  be  of 
fair  quality,  to  be  perfectly  reliable,  the  drill  may  be 
gauged  to  drop  a  seed  every  quarter  to  half  an  inch,  at 
which  rate  it  will  require  from  three  to  four  pounds  to 
the  acre.  If  sown  too  thickly,  great  labor  is  required  to 
thin  the  plants,  as  it  must  be  done  early  enough  in  their 
growth  to  prevent  injury  by  crowding,  and  to  avoid 
breaking  the  roots  of  those  to  be  left. 

SOIL  AND   SOWING. 

Onions  may  be  sown  at  any  time  in  the  fall,  the  weather 
being  favorable,  but  there  is  nothing  to  be  gained  by 
such  very  early  planting.  In  the  latitude  of  Savannah, 
and  northward,  the  young  plants  ot*  October  or  Novem- 
ber sowing  may  be  exposed  to  injury  from  heavy  rains, 
or,  notwithstanding  the  very  hardy  nature  of  the  onion, 
from  severe  freezing  in  December.  The  crop  from  seed 
sown  about  January  1st  escapes  these  dangers,  comes  in 
early  enough  for  the  better  demand,  and,  growing  through 
a  shorter  and  warmer  period,  will  require  less  extended 
care. 

The  onion  is  intolerant  of  the  vicinity  of  trees,  and 
requires  an  open  exposure. 

The  soil  best  adapted  to  this  crop  is  a  deep,  rich,  fria- 
ble warm  mould,  full  of  vegetable  matter,  such  as  is  f re- 


THE  OHIOK.  185 

quently  found  in  river  bottoms  and  drained  ponds.  On 
heavy  land,  the  bulbs  are  apt  to  remain  small,  and  ac- 
quire a  greater  pungency  of  taste.  If  the  soil  is  loamy, 
sand  should  be  the  predominating  constituent.  Land 
recently  cleared,  and  therefore  free  from  grass  and  weed- 
seed,  provided  it  is  made  perfectly  mellow,  is  always  to 
be  preferred  to  old  land,  particularly  unless  the  latter 
has  been  kept  clean  of  weeds  and  grass,  in  order  that 
none  of  their  seeds  may  have  been  self-sown  for  several  suc- 
cessive years.  Although  the  onion  is  a  very  shallow-rooted 
plant,  it  delights  in  a  well-drained,  deeply-stirred,  and 
finely-pulverized  soil.  No  plant  requires  a  more  care- 
ful preparation  of  the  land,  and  a  proper  piece,  once  se- 
lected for  this  crop  (it  being  an  anomaly  in  regard  to 
rotation),  it  should  always  remain  appropriated  to  the 
same  purpose;  for,  with  proper  and  efficient  manure  and 
management,  the  crop  may  be  increased  in  quantity  each 
successive  year.  The  land  should  be  allowed  to  mature 
no  second  crop.  As  soon  as  the  onions  are  removed,  it 
should  be  sown  down  to  cow  peas.  If  recently  cleared 
land  is  selected,  it  should  also  be  sown  with  peas  in  July 
or  August.  They  will  not  only  keep  down  the  weeds, 
and  tend  to  mellow  the  soil  by  the  decaying  mass  of  vege- 
table matter,  but  maintain  and  increase  the  fertility  of 
the  soil. 

The  first  of  December  is  early  enough  to  plow  under 
the  dead  pea  vines,  which  should  be  deeply  buried. 

The  analysis  shows  that  the  onion  requires  a  rich 
nitrogenous  manure,  and  that  it  also  contains  much  pot- 
ash and  phosphoric  acid.  The  manure  of  the  hog  is  gen- 
erally considered  the  best  for  this  crop.  If  stable  manure 
is  used,  it  should  not  be  coarse  enough  to  prevent  its  be- 
ing plowed  under  shallow.  There  is  no  objection  to  fine, 
green  stable  manure,  provided  it  contains  no  seeds  of 
weeds.  If  the  animals  have  been  fed  on  hay,  the  manure 
must  be  thoroughly  fermented  to  destroy  the  vitality  of 


186  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

the  grass  seed.  The  onion  is  a  gross  feeder,  and,  with- 
out adequate  manuring,  there  will  be  no  satisfactory 
crop.  The  plants  will  not  form  bulbs  properly  if  poorly 
fed.  The  yield  will  be  in  proportion  to  the  quantity  and 
quality  of  the  manure.  Thirty  loads,  of  thirty  bushels 
each,  sufficiently  compressed,  or  fermented,  to  weigh  forty 
pounds  to  the  bushel,  is  not  a  heavy  application.  Twenty- 
five  loads  of  night-soil  would  do  as  well.  If  other  fertil- 
izers, such  as  bone-meal  (which  is  excellent),  or  guano,  are 
used,  they  should  be  harrowed  in  so  as  to  permit  the 
roots  of  the  young  plants  to  reach  them.  A  top-dress- 
ing of  a  hundred  bushels  of  ashes  per  acre  is  beneficial. 

After  several  years  of  manuring  with  stable  manure,  a 
change  to  a  half  ton  of  bone-flour,  ammoniated  super- 
phosphate, guano,  or  five  hundred  pounds  of  sulphate  of 
ammonia  would  be  advisable.  If  the  land  is  new,  or 
loamy,  a  cross  plowing  and  double  harrowing  may  be 
necessary  to  put  it  in  proper  trim  to  receive  the  manure. 
It  should  be  level,  lest  heavy  rains  may  wash  out  the 
seed  on  the  higher  points,  and  cover  the  plants  in  lower 
ones  too  deeply.  At  the  South,  where  we  are  visited  by 
heavy  rains,  onions,  on  a  small  scale,  are  best  planted  on 
four-feet-wide  "  lazy  beds,"  the  intervening  paths  acting 
as  auxiliary  drains.  The  seed  may  be  sown  upon  these  beds 
by  hand,  in  drills  half  an  inch  deep,  twelve  inches  apart, 
across  the  bed.  On  a  larger  scale,where  machines  must  be 
used,  making  two  drills  at  a  time,  the  sowing  had  better 
be  done  on  narrow  lands,  fifteen  or  twenty  feet  wide,  the 
rows  running  lengthwise,  twelve  or  fifteen  inches  apart. 
Beds,  or  narrow  lands,  are  formed  in  plowing  under  the 
manure,  previously  applied  broadcast,  as  shallow  as  pos- 
sible, and,  if  the  furrows  intervening  between  the  lands 
are  too  shallow  to  act  as  drains,  the  loose  soil  is  to  be 
thrown  out  upon  the  beds  with  hoes  or  shovels.  The 
surface  must  be  thoroughly  fined  with  harrow  and  hand- 
rake.  In  fair  weather,  the  seed  will  be  up  in  two  weeks. 


THE  ONION.  187 


CULTIVATION. 

The  only  sure  road  to  success  in  onion  culture,  even 
when  all  other  conditions  are  favorable,  is  clean  cultiva- 
tion, and  as  soon  as  the  lines  of  young  plants  are  dis- 
tinguishable, hoeing  should  be  commenced,  and  repeated, 
with  hand-weeding,  whenever  necessary,  no  weed  being 
allowed  to  grow  large  enough  to  disturb  the  roots  of  the 
onion,  when  pulling  it,  and  be  continued  to  within  about 
a  month  from  the  time  the  crop  matures.  The  soil 
should  be  stirred  between  the  plants  in  the  row. 

The  chief  objection  to  this  crop  is  the  amount  of  care- 
ful labor  required  to  keep  it  clean,  at  least  four  or  five 
hoeings  being  necessary,  for  which  the  scuffle,  push,  or 
Dutch  hoe  is  the  best  implement. 

Onions  grow  best  upon  the  surface,  as  their  roots  do 
not  penetrate  the  soil  deeply;  therefore,  the  hoeing  must 
be  superficial,  and  no  soil  should  be  drawn  to  the  rows. 
They  should  be  thinned  to  four' inches  in  the  row,  if  only 
large  bulbs  are  wanted,  but  in  case  a  large  yield  is  de- 
sired, irrespective  of  size,  the  stand  may  be  closer. 
Transplanted  onions  take  root  very  readily;  therefore,  any 
vacant  spaces  may  be  supplied,  or  new  beds  made  with 
the  plants  removed  in  thinning,  cutting  back  the  roots 
to  about  an  huh,  and  the  leaves  one-half  their  length. 
The  roots  should  be  put  down  straight,  and  the  plants 
deeper  than  they  grew  originally.  If  onions  have  room 
laterally,  groups  of  four  or  five  may  be  left  together,  be- 
cause in  their  efforts  for  survival,  they  will  push  one 
another  sidewise,  and  mount  on  top  of  each  other,  and 
still  form  round,  marketable  bulbs. 

HARVESTING   AND  MARKETING. 

At  the  North,  where  the  onions  are  to  be  stored  for 
winter  use,  the  whole  crop  is  pulled  when  three-fourths 
of  the  plants  have  turned  yellow,  shrivelled  and  dried  in 


188  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

the  neck  sufficiently  to  topple  over.  At  this  time,  some 
of  the  roots  are  dead,  and  have  lost  their  hold  upon  the 
soil.  The  onions  are  allowed  to  remain  spread  upon  the 
ground  for  two  or  three  weeks  to  dry,  before  being  housed. 
They  are  in  fit  condition  for  storing,  when  no  moist- 
ure is  visible  upon  strongly  twisting  the  necks.  Here, 
the  crop  being  wanted  for  an  early  market  and  immediate 
use,  the  onions  are  pulled,  as  they  successively  indicate  ma- 
turity by  toppling  over,  and  are  left  on  the  ground  a  day 
or  two,  or  they  are  removed  at  once,  and  the  necks  cut  off 
with  a  sharp  knife,  an  inch  or  so  from  the  bulb,  when 
they  are  carefully  packed  in  bushel  crates  and  shipped. 

A  vegetable,  not  a  luxury,  and  rarely,  if  ever,  out  of 
market,  cannot  be  expected  to  bring  high  prices.  Onions 
range  between  one  dollar  and  two  dollars  and  fifty  cents 
per  bushel  crate.  In  our  local  market  they  brought  last 
June  from  two  dollars  and  twenty-five  cents  to  two  dol- 
lars and  seventy-five  cents  per  bushel  crate. 

A  globular-shaped  onion  will  produce  a  crop  one-third 
larger  than  one  that  is  flat  in  form. 

RAISING   ONION  SEED. 

If  properly  matured,  and  carefully  preserved,  South- 
ern-grown seed  is  as  good  as  any.  The  onion  being  a 
biennial  plant,  it  produces  seed  the  second  season.  The 
bulbs  from  which  it  is  contemplated  to  save  the  seed 
should  be  selected,  choosing  those  which  combine  the 
distinguishing  peculiarities  of  the  variety,  in  order  that 
the  seed  may  remain  true.  If  planted  in  the  fall,  the 
seed  will  be  ripe  the  following  July  or  August.  The  soil 
should  not  be  as  rich  as  for  the  crop  of  bulbs,  lest  the 
flowers  may  blight  and  form  no  seed.  The  rows  should 
be  about  eighteen  inches  apart,  and  the  entire  bulbs 
pressed  into  the  soil  below  the  surface,  about  eight  inches 
apart  in  the  row.  The  seed  stalks  of  some  of  the  va- 
rieties are  five  feet  high,  and  unless  they  are  supported, 


THE   ONION.  189 

they  will  break  or  bend  over,  until  the  seed  heads  either 
touch  the  ground,  or  approach  it  so  closely  as  to  be  dam- 
aged by  the  moisture.  This  support  is  most  easily  given 
by  stretching  twine  a  few  inches  below  the  seed  heads, 
one  along  the  middle  of  the  bed,  and  another  on  the 
outer  edge  of  every  bed.  The  seed  is  ripe  enough  for 
gathering,  when  the  pods  commence  to  burst  open,  and 
heads  and  stalks  turn  yellow.  The  stalks  are  carefully 
cut  six  or  eight  inches  from  the  heads,  which  are  allowed 
to  fall  into  a  bucket  or  open  bag,  otherwise  some  of  the 
seed  may  shell  out  and  be  lost.  Partly-matured  seed 
will  not  ripen  fully,  if  the  stalk  is  cut  close  to  the  seed- 
cluster. 

These  must  be  spread  out  upon  the  close  floor  of  a  dry 
loft,  or  hung  up  to  dry  thoroughly,  when  they  may  be 
thrashed  out,  winnowed,  and  washed.  The  false  seed 
and  husks  will  float  upon  the  surface  of  the  water, 
while  only  the  good  seed  will  sink  to  the  bottom  of  the 
vessel.  The  seed  must  be  quickly  and  thoroughly  dried 
in  the  sun  before  being  stored  away. 

ONION  SETS. 

At  Norfolk,  onions  for  the  Northern  markets  are  not 
grown  from  the  seed,  as  the  crop  would  not  sufficiently 
anticipate  those  of  more  northern  latitudes;  but  from 
sets*  or  small  onions.  Those  of  the  "  Potato-onion  "  are 
put  out  in  August  and  September,  and  sets  of  the  "  Silver- 
skin"  and  "  Yellow  Danvers"  in  February. 

The  "  Potato-onion  "  produces  no  seed,  but  forms  from 
three  to  ten  small  bulbs  around  the  old  one,  from  which 
it  is  propagated.  These  small  bulbs,  when  planted  out, 
increase  in  size,  and  form  a  large  and  marketable  onion. 
These  produce  the  earliest  crop  of  local  growth,  and  even 
survive  the  winter  as  far  north  as  Vermont.  The  prep- 

*  The  English  word  "sets"  may  have  come  over  from  the  German 
"  Setz-2wiebeV  that  js:  planting- onions, 


190  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

aration  of  the  ground  for  these  and  for  other  onion  sets 
is  the  same  as  for  the  crop  from  seed. 

The  sets  are  pressed  into  the  soil  at  the  distances  the 
crop  is  to  mature,  the  tops  about  level  with  the  surface, 
care  being  taken  to  have  the  root  end  down.  The  sets 
should  range  in  size  from  that  of  a  pea  to  a  common- 
sized  marble.  The  smaller  the  better.  When  the  bulbs 
are  too  much  developed,  they  are  apt  to  run  to  seed  in- 
stead of  producing  good  onions.  Onion  sets  are  often 
high-priced,  costing  from  five  to  ten  dollars  per  bushel; 
but  they  may  be  grown  at  the  South  with  proper  manage- 
ment. The  land  should  certainly  be  free  from  weeds  and 
grass,  lighter  and  less  richly  manured  than  for  the  crop. 
The  rows  may  be  ten  inches  apart,  and  the  seed  should 
be  sown  late  in  the  season,  about  May  1st,  and  much 
thicker  than  when  intended  to  produce  large  bulbs. 
From  fifteen  to  twenty  pounds  to  the  acre  are  required. 

INSECTS. 

The  larvae  of  the  Dipterous,  or  Two-winged  insects, 
which  at  present  infest  the  onion  in  this  country,  pene- 
trate it  at  the  root;  and  the  first  indication  of  their  pres- 
ence are  symptoms  of  disease  and  approaching  death. 
There  is  no  remedy,  but  to  dig  up  every  wilted  and 
yellow  plant,  and  to  hunt  for  and  destroy  the  grub  with- 
in the  rotting  bulb,  with  a  view  to  curtail  future  depre- 
dations. 

The  black  Onion-fly  (Ortalis  flexa),  is  a  native  of 
this  country,  while  (Anthomyia  ceparum,)  is  an  im- 
ported insect. 


THE  PEA.  191 


CHAPTER  XXII. 


THE   PEA  (Pisum  sativum.) 

Tin's,  French ;   Erbse,  German ;  Erwat,  Dutch ;  Pisetto,  Italian ;  Rsoles, 
Spanish  ;  and  hlrvilha,  Portuguese. 

The  pea  is  a  hardy  annual,  a  native  of  the  south  of 
Europe,  and  has  been  cultivated  from  time  immemorial. 
We  are  told  that,  in  the  time  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  peas 
not  being  very  common  in  England,  they  were  brought 
from  Holland,  and  that  they  were  "  fit  dainties  for  ladies, 
they  come  so  far,  and  cost  so  dear."  Where  labor  for 
picking  the  crop  is  plentiful,  it  is  one  of  the  indispensable 
crops  of  the  truck-farmer,  bringing  in  the  first  proceeds 
of  the  season. 

VARIETIES. 

A  good  market  variety  should  be  productive,  of  good 
flavor,  form  full,  pods  plump,  and  be  of  uniform  growth. 
Frequently  a  gardener  plants  poor  seed,  which  runs  to 
vine,  and  produces  but  few  good  pods.  The  varieties 
themselves  are  subject  to  change,  and  will  deteriorate, 
unless  constant  care  is  exercised  in  growing  them  for 
seed.  The  varieties  at  present  preferred,  enumerated  in 
the  order  of  their  earliness  and  value  are  : 

First.— The  "Early  Alpha."  This  is,  exclusive  of  the 
"American  Wonder,"  the  only  wrinkled  Dwarf  Pea.  It 
grows  three  feet  high,  is  very  productive,  and  produces 
large  pods  of  dark  green  color.  The  objection  to  all  the 
wrinkled  peas  is,  that  they  must  be  sown  thicker  than 
the  round  varieties. 

Second.— The  "Philadelphia  Extra  Early."  This  is 
very  uniform,  when  the  seed  is  pure,  and  is  productive, 


192  TRUCK-FAKMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

Third.— The  ' '  Daniel  O'Rourke."  This  is  an  excellent 
early  pea,  and  is  very  popular  with  Northern  growers. 
Its  height  is  about  three  feet. 

Of  the  later  kinds,  the  "  Black-eyed"  and  "White- 
marrowfat  "  take  equal  rank,  and  grow  about  four  and  a 
half  feet  high. 

SOIL  AND   SOWING. 

The  large,  later  and  more  hardy  marrowfat  varieties 
may  be  planted  in  the  vicinity  of  Savannah  as  early  aa 
November  20th,  following  with  the  earlier  kinds;  but  in 
usual  seasons  December  1st  is  early  enough  for  the  first 
sowings.  In  the  case  of  a  plant  so  hardy  as  the  pea,  it  is 
possible  to  grow  it,  in  middle  to  south  Florida,  to  mature 
at  any  time  during  the  winter.  It  is  well,  if  a  large  crop 
is  to  be  planted,  to  make  separate  sowings  at  intervals  ot 
a  few  days,  in  order  not  to  have  the  whole  planting  subject 
to  unfavorable  contingencies  at  the  same  stage  of  growth. 
No  usual  degree  of  cold  in  this  latitude  will  hurt  the  pea, 
unless  it  be  in  bloom  or  pod. 

A  dry,  rich,  warm,  sandy  loam  is  the  best  soil  for  this 
crop.  For  the  wrinkled  varieties,  it  is  especially  neces- 
sary that  the  soil  should  be  warm  and  dry.  These  do 
not  seem  to  be  so  well  matured  as  the  round  sorts,  and  in 
moist,  or  wet  and  cool  soils  they  may  fail  to  germinate, 
and  may  rot  in  the  ground.  Good  stable  manure  is  the 
best.  The  field  being  in  proper  condition,  it  is  manured 
in  the  furrow  at  the  rate  of  twenty-five  or  thirty  loads,  of 
thirty  bushels  each,  to  the  acre,  the  rows  being  five  or  six 
feet  apart,  according  to  the  variety.  The  seed  is  sown 
in  double  drills,  about  ten  inches  apart,  on  flat  beds  or 
ridges  over  the  manure.  The  quantity  of  seed  required 
for  an  acre  is  about  two  bushels.  As  regards  the  distance  in 
the  row,  the  peas  are  distributed  according  to  size,  about 
half  an  inch  to  an  inch  and  a  half,  by  hand,  or  by  means 
of  a  drill,  which  sows  both  parallel  drills  at  the  same  time. 


THE   PEA.  193 

The  opinion,  I  believe,  generally  prevails  that  the  deep- 
er peas  can  be  sown,  the  more  productive  will  be  the 
crop,  and  the  longer  will  it  remain  in  bearing.  One  and 
one-half  inch  is  the  usual  depth  in  a  sandy  loam. 

CULTIVATION". 

As  the  growth  of  the  pea  crop  extends  through  the 
winter  and  early  spring,  when  weeds  are  not  abundant, 
cultivation  is  only,  or  chiefly,  necessary  as  a  promoter  of 
growth.  The  soil  between  the  ridges  may  be  stirred 
twice,  or  more  frequently  in  an  unfavorable  season;  but 
as  soon  as  the  plants  grow  to  two  or  three  inches,  the 
earth  should  be  hoed  to  the  stems,  when  dry,  gradually 
earthing  higher  up,  as  the  peas  increase  in  hight.  All 
peas,  save  the  dwarfs,  not  only  fruit  better,  but  continue 
longer  in  bearing  and  mature  better,  if  they  are  bushed. 
As  soon  as  they  commence  to  "  run  "  to  vine,  or  to  put 
out  their  clasping  tendrils,  which  will  be  when  about  ten 
or  twelve  inches  high,  according  to  variety,  they  should 
be  bushed  or  stuck.  Branching  sticks  are  thrust  between 
the  drills  so  firmly  into  the  ground  as  not  to  be  blown 
down,  and  near  enough  to  be  a  sapport  for  all  the  plants. 
This  will  not  only  be  facilitated,  if  the  sticks  cross  each 
other  in  the  row  near  the  surface,  but  they  will  be  a  mu- 
tual support.  When  the  bushes  from  which  the  sticks 
are  to  be  cut  are  more  or  less  convenient,  the  expense 
of  this  sticking  will  be  from  three  to  five  dollars  per 
acre.  The  first  shipments  are  usually  made  from  Savan- 
nah about  March  10th.  The  early  varieties  admit  of 
about  five  pickings;  the  later,  one  or  two  more;  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  to  two  hundred  crates  being  the  yield  per 
acre. 

Peas  were  sold  the  past  season  at  from  one  dollar  and 
fifty  cents  to  five  dollars  and  fifty  cents  per  bushel  crate, 
while  fifteen  years  ago  I  received  twenty  dollars  per  barrel 
on  April  5th. 
9 


194  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

No  pod  should  be  picked  or  packed  which  is  yet  flat, 
for  the  reason  that  the  peas  are  not  sufficiently  developed; 
and  none  that  are  discolored  or  rough  from  over-ripeness 
should  be  marketed.  The  ordinary  bushel  crate  is  the 
only  package  used  at  present.  The  contents  should  be 
thoroughly  shaken  down,  and  the  crate  be  more  than  full, 
when  ready  to  be  nailed  up. 

The  two  weevils,  Bruchus  pisi  and  Bruchus  granarius, 
which  'are  principally  injurious  to  the  pea,  affect  the 
farmer  only  in  so  far  as  they  are  destructive  to  his  seed, 
the  larvae  inhabiting  it  and  feeding  on  its  substance. 

Though  they  usually  leave  the  germ  untouched,  and 
buggy-peas  will  germinate,  yet  the  plant,  being  without 


Fig.  48. — PEA-WEEVIL  (Bruchus  pm).  Fig.  49. — GHAIN  BRUCHUS 

a,  Beetle,  enlarged ;  6,  Pea,  with  spot.      •  (Bruchus  gratiarius). 

the  nutriment  provided  for  its  early  growth,  is  weak  at 
the  start,  and  is  never  so  vigorous  and  productive  as 
those  from  sound  seed.  Our  common  Pea- weevil  (Bruchus 
pisi)  is  given  in  fig.  48,  much  enlarged,  its  real  size 
being  shown  in  the  outline  at  the  left.  The  Grain 
Bruchus  or  Barn-beetle  of  Europe  (Bruchus  grananus), 
fig.  49,  infests  both  peas  and  beans.  It  is  sometimes 
imported  with  foreign  seeds,  but  has  not  yet  become 
naturalized.  It  is  somewhat  smaller  than  the  Pea- 
beetle,  and  the  markings  of  the  two  are  very  different. 
The  Cotton  Boll- worm  (HeliotMs  armigera)  is  some- 
times found  feeding  upon  the  pea,  but  too  seldom  to  do 
much  harm. 


THE  POTATO.  195 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 


THE  POTATO  (Solanum  tuberosum.) 

Jbmme  de  terre,  French;  Kartoffel,  German;  Aardappel,  Dutch;  Tartvfi 
bianchi  or  Rmo  di  terra,  ital ;  Papas,  Spanish. 

The  active  principle,  Solanin,  characteristic  of  the 
family  Solanacece,  to  which  the  potato  belongs,  has  been 
found,  but  in  much  smaller  proportions  than  in  other 
members,  in  the  sap,  in  the  berries,  and  also  in  tubers  of 
the  potato  after  they  had  sprouted.  For  this  reason 
sprouted  potatoes  are  less  valuable  for  food  than  before 
the  development  of  sprouts,  although  in  the  process  of 
Booking  a  change  is  effected  in  the  composition. 

The  chief  organic  ingredient  of  the  potato  is  starch, 
which  forms  about  one-tenth  of  its  weight.  It  has  gen- 
erally been  admitted,  that  the  potato  was  first  introduced 
by  the  Spaniards  into  Europe  from  South  America  (it  is 
still  found  in  its  wild  state  in  the  mountains  of  Chili), 
and  that  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  introduced  it  into  England 
from  Virginia.  Whether  this  is  strictly  the  history  of 
its  appearance  in  Europe,  or  not,  the  potato  has  been 
found  indigenous  in  Mexico  and  Arizona.  Johnson 
wrote:  " The  potato  is  one  of  the  greatest  blessings  be- 
stowed upon  mankind;  for,  next  to  rice,  it  affords  sus- 
tenance to  more  human  beings  than  any  other  gift  of 
God."  Unlike  the  latter  (the  continuous  use  of  which 
sometimes  affects  the  eyes),  it  may  be  the  exclusive  food 
of  man  for  an  extended  period  without  injuring  the 
system.  And  it  is  owing  to  the  absence  of  any  distinct 
peculiarity  of  taste,  to  its  wholesomeness  and  to  its  con- 
sisting largely  of  starch,  in  every  particular  resembling 
the  flour  of  grain,  that  it  may  be  continuously  used  as 


196  TRUCK-FAKMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

a  chief  article  of  food  for  a  longer  time  than  any  other 
vegetable.  It  is  somewhat  strange,  that  the  family 
which  embraces  the  deadly  nightshade,  and  other  very 
poisonous  plants,  should  also  have  among  its  members 
this  most  useful  vegetable,  besides  a  few  others  that  are 
mentioned  in  this  book. 

Of  all  the  crops  of  the  truck-farmer,  the  potato  is  the 
one  which  is  always  salable  at  more  or  less  remunerative 
prices;  its  general  use  among  all  classes  and  nativities  of 
the  population,  precluding  a  glut  in  the  market. 

Owing  to  the  prevalence  of  drouth  at  the  North  dur- 
ing the  summer  of  1881,  the  staple  crops  of  potatoes  and 
cabbages  having  been  failures,  the  winter  stock  was  so 
nearly  exhausted,  that  extensive  importations  were  made 
from  Europe;  and  when  our  Southern  crops  came  into 
market,  they  enjoyed  an  unprecedented  demand  and  high 
prices.  My  own  small  crop  sold  at  from  six  to  seven 
dollars  for  No.  1,  averaging  six  dollars  and  sixty  cents 
per  barrel,  and  "culls"  from  three  dollars  to  four  dol- 
lars and  fifty  cents,  averaging  three  dollars  and  forty-five 
cents  per  barrel. 

Those  farmers  who  planted  largely  and  had  good  crops 
of  these  vegetables  made  a  "hit"  in  their  operations.  It 
is  likely  that  others,  induced  by  this  success,  will  plant 
potatoes  and  cabbages  more  heavily  than  usual,  and  re- 
duce the  acreage  of  other  valuable  products.  I  embrace 
this  occasion  to  advise  truck-farmers,  that  they  will 
probably  thrive  better  in  the  course  of  time,  by  confin- 
ing themselves  to  their  usual  areas  of  each  crop,  and  by 
not  allowing  themselves  to  be  influenced  by  periodical 
successes  with  any  one  vegetable. 

VAKIETIES. 

A  variety  of  potatoes  to  be  cultivated  by  the  Southern 
truck-farmer  should  be  productive  in  our  climate  of  large 
and  even-sized  tuber?,  growing  close  together  in  the  hill, 


THE  POTATO.  19? 

with  few  or  no  small  ones,  it  should  be  early  and  be 
popular  enough  in  the  Northern  market  to  command  the 
highest  prices.  At  present  the  "  Early  Rose  "  meets  these 
requirements  and  is  generally  the  favorite,  but  the 
"  Early  Sunrise,"  "Beauty  of  Hebron,"  and  the  "Bur- 
bank,"  are  also  planted.  The  potato  grown  in  Bermuda 
is  the  "Chili  Red."  Recently  some  Charleston  farmers 
have  planted  this  variety  in  preference  to  the  "  Early 
Rose,"  the  latter  not  having  given  satisfaction. 

SIZE   OF   SEED. 

One  of  the  mooted  questions  in  gardening  is  :  shall  we 
plant  the  whole  potato  or  cut  it  up  into  sets  ?  Experi- 
ments have  failed  to  establish  any  certain  rule  ;  and  the 
intelligent  farmer  will  understand  that  circumstances 
must  govern  the  case. 

The  potato  tuber  is  not  a  root,  for  it  has  neither  root- 
hairs  itself,  nor  has  the  stem  which  connects  it  with 
the  parent  stock  either  fibrous  roots  or  root-hairs  and, 
therefore,  provides  the  plant  with  no  nourishment;  nor 
is  it  a  seed  any  more  than  is  a  stick  of  sugar  cane  a  seed. 
The  tubers  are  nourished  by  elaborated  sap  descending 
from  the  leaves  through  the  bark.  The  formation  of 
abnormal  tubers  above  the  ground  at  the  point  where 
the  stem  of  a  plant  has  been  injured  by  a  cut- worm,  or 
otherwise,  or  in  the  axils  of  branches,  is,  among  others, 
a  proof  of  this.  The  potato  is  an  enlarged  underground 
stem,  and  the  eyes  are  buds.  These  buds  are  more  numer- 
ous at  the  point  furthest  from  the  plant,  just  as  the  buds 
are  closer  together  at  the  end  of  a  branch  of  the  fig  or 
any  other  tree.  When  the  potato  has  dried  out  suffi- 
ciently and  is  surrounded  by  favorable  conditions  of 
warmth  and  moisture,  the  eyes  or  buds  begin  to  grow; 
and  until  roots  have  been  emitted  for  their  nourishment, 
the  shoots  are  dependent  upon  the  starch  of  the  sur- 
rounding substance  for  their  support;  resembling  a  seed 
in  this  respect.  The  eyes  are  independent  of  each  other, 


198  TRUCK-FAKMItfG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

having  no  vital  connection.  If  both  eye  and  tuher  be 
sound,  the  shoots  will  grow  to  be  healthy  plants,  if  condi- 
tions are  favorable,  whether  they  be  planted  with  the  en- 
tire tuber  or  only  connected  to  a  small  piece  of  its  de- 
tached substance. 

The  following  rule  has  been  given:  cut  large  potatoes 
to  single  eyes;  small  potatoes  will  produce  as  good  a  crop 
if  cut  in  pieces  corresponding  in  size,  for  the  young 
sprout  requires  substance  to  push  it  forward.  The  intel- 
ligent farmer  should  have  an  object  in  view,  and  his 
operations  should  be  undertaken  to  attain  it.  In  this 
case  his  purpose  is  to  procure  a  crop  of  as  many  large 
potatoes  as  possible.  It  will  not  be  secured,  if  many 
stalks  grow  from  each  set,  any  more  than  four  or  five 
stalks  of  corn  to  the  hill  will  produce  large  ears  of  corn, 
though  single  stalks  may.  Whatever  be  the  size  of  the 
potato,  it  should  be  fully  matured.  If  any  Irish  or  Sweet 
potatoes  are  found  rotten  in  the  hill,  they  are  always  the 
largest,  which  have  decayed  after  becoming  over-ripe.  It 
is,  therefore,  safest,  for  fear  of  having  many  stalks  in  the 
hill,  to  use  a  medium-sized  tuber,  cut  to  single  eyes,  pro- 
vided the  buds  show  signs  of  development.  If  none  of 
the  eyes  are  developed,  or  only  one  is,  that  one  only, 
from  the  whole  potato,  is  apt  to  grow,  the  rest  re- 
maining dormant.  The  eyes  upon  seed  potatoes  procured 
from  the  North  are  very  apt  to  sprout  upon  arriving  in 
our  warm  climate,  and  these  should  always  be  cut  to 
single  eyes.  Northern  seed  potatoes  should  not  be  im- 
ported, until  the  farmer  is  ready  to  plant  them.  If  the 
first  shoots  are  rubbed  off  or  killed  by  frosts,  the  suc- 
ceeding ones  will  be  weaker  and  are  apt  to  be  more 
numerous. 

In  cutting  potatoes  to  single  eyes,  the  cutter  com- 
mences at  the  stem  end,  where  the  eyes  are  less  abun- 
dant, and  slices  off  pieces  with  a  single  eye  to  each,  in 
such  a  manner  as  to  distribute  the  substance  of  the  tuber 


THE  POTATO.  ,  199 

as  equally  as  possible.  If  rules  are  to  be  given,  they 
should  be:  cut  a  large  potato  to  single  eyes,  whether 
sprouted  or  not.  Small  potatoes  may  not  be  ripe  enough 
to  grow  strong  shoots;  but  if  a  small  potato  is  enough 
matured  to  put  forth  sturdy  sprouts,  cut  it  also  to  single 
eyes;  for  very  little  substance  will  suffice  for  their  sup- 
port; but,  if  the  potato  has  not  sprouted,  it  may  be 
planted  whole,  without  much  danger  of  its  pushing  up 
more  than  one  stalk.  Of  late  years,  Southern  truck- 
farmers  have  found  that  home-grown  seed  of  the  second 
crop  of  Irish  potatoes,  maturing  late  in  the  fall,  whether 
cut  or  not,  gives  the  best  yields,  and  southern  seed  are 
now  preferred  from  Norfolk  to  the  Gulf.  The  tubers, 
being  a  shorter  time  out  of  the  ground,  are  not  so  dry, 
and  put  forth  only  single  shoots.  There  is  no  fear  that 
their  first  sprouts  have  been  rubbed  off  before  planting. 
If  frost  cuts  down  the  young  plants,  unlike  northern 
seed,  only  single  shoots  will  appear,  yielding  large  pota- 
toes, instead  of  many  too  small  for  market. 

SOIL   AND    CULTIVATION. 

In  an  open,  warm,  sandy  soil,  the  sets  may  be  planted 
soon  after  being  cut ;  but  for  a  cool,  moist  and  heavier 
soil,  the  cut  surfaces  should  be  dried  by  spreading  the 
sets  in  the  shade  for  a  day  or  two,  or,  if  put  up  in  bulk, 
sprinkle  with  lime  or  land-plaster. 

The  quantity  required  to  plant  an  acre  will  be  about 
three  to  four  barrels,  according  to  the  size,  and  the  man- 
ner of  cutting  the  potatoes.  While  the  plant  is  indig- 
enous to  Southern  latitudes,  it  is  found  at  considerable 
altitudes  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  and  partakes  of  the 
peculiarities  of  those  of  cool  climates,  generally  suc- 
ceeding better  at  the  North  than  at  the  South.  IJnlike 
its  relatives,  the  egg-plant  and  tomato,  it  is  intolerant  of 
dryness  and  heat,  and  should  therefore  be  planted  as 
early  as  the  season  will  admit,  in  order  to  escape  warm 
weather.  About  February  1st  is  soon,  enough  for  the 


200  TKUCK-FARMIHG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

"  Early  Kose."  Some  varieties  start  even  earlier  than 
this,  and  a  week  later  would  better  suit  the  "  Beauty  of 
Hebron,"  for  instance.  If  Southern  stock  is  offered  in 
the  Northern  markets  while  the  Northern  winter  supply 
is  abundant,  and  still  of  good  quality,  very  good  prices 
can  not  be  expected.  It  will,  therefore,  not  be  the  pol- 
icy of  Florida  growers  to  put  in  their  crops  much  earlier 
than  the  date  named. 

On  account  of  its  native  habitat  the  potato  requires  at 
the  South  a  cool,  moist  soil.  Low,  black  moulds  in 
river  bottoms,  if  well  drained,  may  give  enormous  yields; 
but  the  product  is  apt  to  be  of  inferior  quality  and  decay 
readily,  the  gluten  predominating  over  the  starch  in  its 
composition.  No  vegetable  varies  more  in  quality  on 
different  soils.  A  variety  may  be  fine  on  a  good  soil  arid 
nearly  worthless  for  table  use  on  one  not  adapted  to  it. 
The  mealiest  and  best-flavored  potatoes  are  grown  on 
sandy  soil,  but  for  a  satisfactory  yield,  a  good,  rich, 
sandy  loam,  with  an  abundance  of  vegetable  matter  is 
indispensable. 

Whatever  be  its  character,  the  soil  should  be  broken 
up  deeply  and  thorougly  mellowed,  in  order  that  it  may 
absorb  and  retain  moisture.  Freshly  cleared  ground,  of 
good  quality,  produces  better  crops  than  old  land,  prob- 
ably in  consequence  of  its  greater  content  of  potash.  The 
soil  should  have  been  previously  enriched  for  a  preced- 
ing crop.  The  roots  will  extend  beyond  the  drill,  and 
poor  land  fertilized  with  the  same  amount  and  quality 
of  manure  in  the  furrow  will,  therefore,  not  produce 
satisfactorily. 

Stable  manure  or  barn-yard  manure  is  chiefly  to  be 
relied  upon  by  the  potato  grower.  Composts  of  good 
commercial  fertilizers  with  leaves  or  leaf-mould  with  the 
specially  adapted  potash  salts,  or  ashes  and  bone-flour, 
may  be  used  where  a  sufficiency  of  stable  manure  cannot 
be  had.  As  a  rule,  land  can  scarcely  be  made  too  rich 


THE   POTATO.  801 

for  the  potato.  The  new  varieties,  unlike  old  ones,  will 
not  run  to  vine  from  heavy  manuring;  but  will  yield  in 
proportion  to  their  food,  probably  in  consequence  of 
their  greater,  and  yet  undiminished  vigor.  Fresh,  dry 
stable  manure,  especially  in  dry,  light  soil,  should  not 
come  in  contact  with  the  sets,  lest  the  heat  destroy  their 
vitality.  The  same  applies  to  Peruvian  guano,  fish  scrap, 
hen  manure,  etc.  Rich  animal  manures  may  render  the 
tubers  rough,  ill-shaped  and  knobby.  If  the  common 
German  kainit  is  used,  it  should  be  sown  broadcast,  or 
harrowed  in,  two  months  before  planting  time,  for  fear 
the  chloride  of  magnesium  it  contains  may  otherwise 
injure  the  crop. 

The  enormous  prize  crops  reported  some  years  ago  to 
a  New  York  house,  for  instance  of  ten  barrels,  or  four- 
teen hundred  and  seventeen  pounds  from  a  single  pound 
of  seed  potatoes,  nineteen  pounds  from  a  single  hill  of 
two  sets,  prove  the  astonishing  effects  of  heavy  manur- 
ing, and  at  the  same  time  the  possibility  of  the  use  of 
very  small  sets.  In  some  cases  a  single  eye  was  subdivided 
into  ten  pieces,  a  single  pound  furnished  two  hundred 
and  forty  sets.  The  largest  crop,  per  acre,  upon  record 
was  made  about  forty  years  ago  by  Mr.  Knight,  the  cele- 
brated horticulturist,  and  President  of  the  Royal  Hor- 
ticultural Society  (Eng. ),  of  thirty-four  tons  (English) 
and  nine  cwt.,  equal  to  twelve  hundred  and  eighty-four 
bushels  of  sixty  pounds  each. 

From  sixty  to  one  hundred  barrels  per  acre  is  quite  a 
satisfactory  crop  for  the  Southern  truck-farmer.  The 
usual  mode  of  planting  is  in  the  drill.  When  in  hills, 
they  are  made  three  by  two,  or  three  by  three,  feet  apart, 
and  two  or  three  sets  are  planted  in  each,  so  that  they 
may  be  cultivated  both  ways.  The  land  being  in  proper 
condition,  furrows  are  made  by  the  plow  three  or  three 
and  a  half  feet  apart,  into  which  the  manure,  if  planting 
is  on  a  large  scale,  is  distributed,  at  the  rate  of  forty 


202  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

loads  to  the  acre,  by  a  manure-spreader,  and  the  sets  are 
placed  directly  upon  the  manure,  at  from  about  twelve 
to  fifteen  inches  apart.  In  light,  warm  land,  the  sets  may 
at  once  be  covered  by  the  plow  to  the  depth  of  six  inches, 
and  in  the  subsequent  cultivation  no  hilling  up  is  neces- 
sary or  advisable.  On  cool,  heavy  land,  it  is  advisable  to 
cover  at  first  to  the  depth  of  three  or  four  inches,  and  so 
early  in  the  stage  of  growth,  as  not  to  injure  the  roots, 
an  additional  inch  or  two  may  be  drawn  to  the  plants  by 
the  hoe.  Subsequently  the  workings  by  plow  and  hoe 
should  be  superficial.  As  soon,  however,  as  the  first 
shoots  become  visible,  the  surface  of  the  rows  should  be 
raked  over,  to  loosen  the  soil  and  destroy  any  germinat- 
ing or  young  weeds,  or  a  light  harrow  may  be  used  some 
time  before  the  sprouts  appear  above  the  ground.  A 
single  section  of  the  Thomas-harrow  with  slanting  teeth 
answers  the  purpose  admirably. 

HARVESTING  THE   CROPS. 

A  potato  is  immature  and  unfit  for  food,  so  long  as 
the  skin  can  be  readily  slipped  from  the  surface.  If 
dug  prematurely,  they  will  be  bruised  and  blackened 
in  the  barrels,  and  be  unsalable  at  fair  prices.  When 
the  plant  dies,  and  not  before,  the  crop  may  be  gathered. 

A  good  plowman  may  be  able  with  a  double-mould 
plow,  or  potato-digger,  to  throw  out  an  extensive  and 
less  valuable  crop  than  that  of  the  truck-farmer,  without 
too  much  loss  and  bruising,  but  here  a  plow  should  only 
be  used  to  side  the  rows  and  the  potatoes  be  dug  out  with 
steel-pronged  hoes,  or  potato-drags. 

To  avoid  unnecessary  handling,  the  potatoes  should  be 
assorted  as  first  quality  and  culls  (too  small  tubers  being 
rejected)  in  the  field.  Cloudy  weather  is  the  best  suited 
for  digging  the  crop.  Potatoes  will  not  endure  exposure 
to  the  hot  sun.  If  packed  while  warmed  by  the  sun,  they 
are  apt  to  rot  before  reaching  market.  If  dug  during 


THE   POTATO.  203 

sunshine,  they  should  be  gathered  as  dug,  carefully 
emptied  into  barrels  already  ventilated,  and  either 
promptly  hauled  from  the  field,  or  each  barrel  shaded 
by  potato  vines. 

The  diggers  should  not  be  permitted  to  bruise  the  po- 
tatoes by  pitching  them  upon  piles  or  distant  rows;  nor 
the  pickers  by  throwing  them  roughly  into  their  baskets. 
The  more  carefully  a  vegetable  is  handled,  the  better  will 
it  strike  the  buyer's  eye,  and  consequently,  the  more 
money  will  it  bring  the  grower.  Whatever  be  its  size, 
no  cut  or  bruised  potato  should  be  shipped  in  the  first 
quality,  but  may  be  included  in  the  "  culls."  The  bar- 
rels must  be  well  shaken  down,  and  so  full  that  the  heads 
have  to  be  pressed  upon  the  contents,  and  they  should  be 
double-headed  and  strongly  coopered. 

The  crop  generally  matures  in  this  latitude  about  the 
middle  of  May.  An  unripe  potato  in  which  the  starch 
has  been  imperfectly  formod  is  slow  to  dry  out  and  slow 
to  sprout. 

THE   SECOND    CROP. 

A  sufficient  quantity  of  the  " culls"  should,  there- 
fore, be  reserved  from  the  ripest  portion  of  the  field 
for  seed  of  the  second  crop,  and  stored  in  a  cool,  dry 
place,  excluded  from  the  light.  They  may  be  covered 
on  a  barn  floor  in  alternate  thin  layers  with  very  dry 
sand,  or  put  away  in  bushel  crates. 

If  exposed  to  warmth  and  moisture  two  or  three 
weeks  before  planting  time,  sprouting  may  be  hastened 
and  a  better  stand  be  secured.  The  time  to  put  in  the 
second  crop  is  from  the  latter  part  of  July  to  August 
10th.  If  the  eyes  have  sprouted,  the  tubers  should  be 
cut,  but  otherwise  planted  whole. 

As  at  this  time  the  weather  is  warm  and  the  season 
of  growth  short,  they  should  be  well  manured  and  the 
land  deeply  broken  up  and  pulverized  to  retain  mois- 


204  TRtTCK-FARMtsrG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

ture.  The  crop  will  be  matured  before  frost,  which 
generally  occurs  about  November  1st,  when  it  should 
be  dug  and  the  seed  stored  away,  as  recommended  above. 

DISEASES   AND   IKSECTS. 

The  fungoid  disease,  sometimes  so  destructive  to  the 
potato  crops  of  Europe,  and  of  the  northern  part  of  this 
continent,  will  rarely,  if  ever,  affect  our  early  crops  of 
early  varieties,  and  the  later  ones  must  be  exempt  in 
consequence  of  the  heat,  as  cool  moisture  seems  neces- 
sary for  the  development  of  this  disease. 

TJie  earliest  crops  at  the  North  escape  great  injury 
from  the  Colorado  Potato-beetle  (Doryphora  10-lineata), 
and  ours  will  therefore  remain  exempt  from  that  pest, 
should  it  come  South.     The  insects  infesting  the  potato 
at  the  South  are  of  the  Lepidoptera: 
First — Gortynia  nitela  (the  Potato-stalk  borer). 
Second — Sphinx  quinquemaculata  (the  Potato-worm). 

Among  the  Coleoptera. 

Third — Baridius  trinotatus  (the  Potato-stalk  weevil). 
Fourth — Lema  trilineata  (the  Three-lined  Leaf -beetle). 
Fifth — Laohnosterna  quercina  (the  White-grub). 
Sixth — Deloyala,  clavata  (the  Clubbed  Tortoise-beetle). 
Seventh — Lytta  marginata  (Margined  Blister-beetle). 
Eighth — Lytta  vittata  (Striped  Blister-beetle). 
Ninth — Lytta  cinerea  (Ash-grey  Blister-beetle). 
The  first  three  of  these  attack  the  plant  only  in  the 
larval  state. 

Numbers  1  and  3  are  more  injurious  than  any 
others,  as  they  devour  a  vital  part,  and  live  within  the 
stalks.  The  Potato-stalk  Borer  lives  within  the  stalks 
of  several  plants  including  the  Dahlia  and  other  flowers, 
and  attacks  the  tomato  as  well  as  the  potato.  When 
full  grown,  it  enters  the  earth,  and  in  about  two  months 
comes  out  as  a  small  moth,  fig.  50. 


THE  POTATO. 


205 


The  Potato-stalk  Weevil  lives  within  the  stalk  in  a 
similar  manner  to  the  borer,  but  it  undergoes  its  changes 


Fig.  50.— THE  POTATO-STALK  BORER. 
Moth.  Larva. 

within  the  stem,  and  finally  appears  as  a  small  beetle. 
The  different  stages  are  shown  in  fig.  51.     When  a  vine 


Fig.  51.—  THE  POTATO  STALK  WEEVIL. 
a,  Larva  ;  b,  Pupa  ;  c,  Beetle. 

is  seen  to  wilt,  or  to  be  dying,  the  stems  should  be  ex- 
amined for  the  larvae,  and  burnt  to  prevent  an  increase  of 

the  insect.  The  worms 
of  the  potato  and  to- 
mato-moth and  the 
other  insects,  exclu- 
sive of  the  blister- 
beetles,  are  not  numer- 
ous enough  to  inflict 
much  injury.  The 
Three-lined  leaf-beetle 

feeds  UpOU  the  plant 
jn  |tg  ]arva]  anfl  per. 

feet  state.      The  larvae  can  be  distinguished  from  any 
others,  by  being  covered,  like  the  larvae  of  the  Tortoise- 


Fig.  52.—  THREE-LINED  LEAP   BEETLE. 
a,  Larva;  ft,  End  of   Body;  c,  Pupa;   a,   Eggs. 


206  TKUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

beetles,  by  its  own  excrement,  as  shown  in  fig.  52.  The 
perfect  insect  has  a  general  resemblance  to  the  Striped 
Cucumber-beetle. 

The  White  Grub  is  a  general  feeder,  and  destroys  the 
roots  of  many  different  plants.  The  larva  is  shown  at 
fig.  53,  and  the  perfect  beetle,  the  well-known  June-bug, 
in  fig.  54. 

The  principal  insect  enemies  of  the  sweet-potato  are 
the  Tortoise-beetles,  of  which  there  are  several,  some  of 


Fig.  55. 

"Fig.  53.  Fig.  54.  CLUBBED  TOR- 

WHITE    GRUB.  JUNE-BUG.  TOI8E-BEETLE. 

them  of  singular  beauty.  One  of  them,  the  Clubbed 
Tortoise-beetle  (Deloyala  clavata,  fig.  55),  forms  an  ex- 
ception, and  selects  the  common  or  Irish  potato  as  its 
food  plant,  feeding  upon  it  in  its  perfect  state,  the  larva 
of  this  species  being  unknown. 

The  Blister-beetles  feed  upon  the  foliage  in  the  perfect 
state  only.  They  are  sometimes  quite  abundant,  particu- 
larly upon  the  second  crop.  Some  of  the  farmers  near 
Savannah  were  compelled  to  use  Paris  green  last  season, 
to  stay  the  ravages  of  Lytta  mdrginata. 


THE   EADISH.  201 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 


THE  RADISH  (Raphanus  sativus). 

Radis  and  Rave  French  ;  EetHg,  German  ;  Tamme  radijs^  Dutch ;  Rofan(\ 
Italian  ;  and  Jlabano,  Spanish. 

The  Radish  is  not  known  in  the  wild  state,  and  its 
native  country  is  doubtful.  It  is  mentioned  as  being 
cultivated  in  England  in  1584. 

The  radish,  to  be  marketable,  should  not  lose  its  ac- 
ceptable crispness,  and  I  have,  therefore,  never  heard  of 
its  satisfactory  cultivation  for  the  Northern  markets 
south  of  Norfolk. 

The  varieties  there  used  are:  "Th?  Long  Scarlet  Short 
Top,"  and  "The  Scarlet  Tur- 
nip," which  are  sown,  as  the 
season  will  admit,  at  any  time 
from  Christmas  to  the  last  01 
February.  A  light,  mellow  soil 
is  best  adapted  to  this  crop,  as 
it  produces  cleaner,  nicer  rad- 
ishes, and  of  better  flavor,  than 
a  heavier  soil.  This  applies 
particularly  to  the  longer-rooted 
va-ieties.  The  manure  should  Flg  56._SCARLET'  TUUNIP, 
be  deeply  plowed  under.  The  BADISH. 

field  having  been  plowed  in  narrow  lands  and  finely 
harrowed,  the  seed  is  sown  broadcast  at  the  rate  of 
about  twelve  pounds  to  the  acre,  and  covered  with  a 
light  harrow.  The  crop  is  sometimes  large  enough 
to  be  marketable  in  March,  but  it  is  generally  shipped 
throughout  April.  The  radishes  are  washed,  bunched, 
and  packed  tightly  in  ventilated  barrels,  generally 
holding  about  two  hundred  bunches.  The  price 


208  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

ranges  low;  but  these  vegetables  sometimes  sell  as  high 
as  eight  dollars  per  barrel.  In  case  of  very  warm  weather, 
a  lump  of  ice  is  of  late  years  sometimes  packed  in  the 
centre  of  the  barrel. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 


SPINACH  (Spinacia  oleraced). 

Epinard,  French ;   Spinat,  German ;  Spinagie,  Dutch ;  Spinaci,  Italian  ; 
Espinaca,  Spanish. 

The  common  Spinach  is  an  annual  plant,  supposed  to 
be  a  native  of  Western  Asia  and  to  have  been  introduced 
into  England  about  the  commencement  of  the  sixteenth 
century.  Spinach  is  very  extensively  used  at  the  North, 
and  when  the  supply  of  other  green  vegetables  has  been 
short,  that  grown  at  Norfolk  has  sold  for  eight  dollars 
per  barrel;  but  the  price  is  very  variable.  I  have  never 
heard  of  its  being  grown  for  the  Northern  markets,  as  far 
south  as  Charleston.  The  variety  raised  at  Norfolk  is 
the  " Improved  Curled  American  Savoy."  The  seed  is 
sown  from  September  10th  until  October  15th,  in  drills 
thirty  inches  apart,  requiring  from  ten  to  twelve  pounds 
to  the  acre.  The  land  must  be  warm  and  strong,  and 
the  plant  requires  exceedingly  rich  manuring.  The  gar- 
deners at  Norfolk  supplement  their  stable  manure  with 
Peruvian  guano.  Some  of  them  add  to  the  heavy  ma- 
nuring given  in  the  fall  a  top-dressing  of  a  ton  to  the  acre 
of  the  best  guano.  The  crop  occasionally  pays  well,  but 
costs  the  best  growers  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  per 


THE   SQUASH.  20H 

acre  to  raise  it.     When  the  land  is  very  good,  the  rows 
may  be  only  eighteen  inches  apart.     This  plant,  like  the 
cauliflower,  must  never  be  stunted,  but  be  pushed  from 
the  start. 
When  the  leaves  are  about  an  inch  broad,  the  plants 


Fig.  57.— SPINACH. 

are  thinned  to  from  six  to  eight  inches.  The  crop  must 
be  frequently  hoed.  The  Norfolk  crop  is  marketed  ID 
March,  and  is  packed  tightly  in  ventilated  barrels. 


CHAPTEK   XXVI. 

THE  SQUASH  (CucurUta  Pepo.) 
Courge  Melonee,  French  ;  Melonenkurbis,  German. 

The  Squash  is  a  native  of  the  Levant,  and  was  first 
introduced  into  England  in  1597.  The  Summer  Squash 
is  an  early  vegetable,  bears  transportation  well,  if  picked 
at  a  proper  stage  of  growth,  and  brings  satisfactory, 
though  never  fancy  prices.  Sometimes,  however,  a  part 
of  the  crop  may  be  left  on  the  farmer's  hands,  With  the 


210 


TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 


large,  but  late  and  unproductive  winter  squashes,  the 
truck-farmer  has  no  concern.  Of  the  early  summer 
squashes  the  two  varieties  cultivated  for  the  Northern 


Fig.  58.— SQUASH— WHITE  BUSH  SCALLOP. 

markets  are:  the  "Early  White  Bush  Scallop,"  fig.  58, 
and  the  "  Early  Summer  Crook-neck,"  fig.  59. 

The  latter  is  much  the  best  flavored  of  all  the  bush 
squashes.  It  is  of  a  dark  orange  color  and  is  covered 
with  warty  excrescences.  When  sufficiently  grown  for 


Fig.  59.— SQUASH— SUMMER  CROOK-NECK. 

shipment,  it  is  about  ten  inches  long.  Although  this 
may  sometimes  be  preferred,  and  occasionally  command 
a  better  price,  the  scallop  squash  is  the  favorite,  as  it 
bears  transportation  and  is  packed  much  better,  The 


THE  SQUASH.  211 

"Boston  Marrow"  and  "Hubbard"  have  recently  been 
grown  for  shipment.  These  are  winter,  running  varie- 
ties, and  must  be  planted  from  eight  to  ten  feet  apart. 
If  one  saves  his  own  squash  seed,  he  must  avoid  having 
any  others  of  the  same  family  growing  near  by. 

SOIL  AND   CULTIVATION. 

The  squash  is  a  little  more  hardy  than  the  melon  and 
cucumber,  and  is  planted  from  about  the  last  of  February 
up  to  the  middle  of  March,  in  the  latitude  of  Savannah, 
and,  of  course,  earlier  to  the  southward.  This  crop  re- 
quires a  light,  warm  soil,  and  liberal  manuring,  particularly 
when  planted  so  early.  It  is  usually  grown  in  hills  four 
or  five  feet  apart  each  way,  the  manure  being  dug  in 
somewhat,  as  recommended  for  melons,  at  the  rate  of 
two  shovelfuls  to  the  hill.  From  six  to  ten  seeds  are 
sown  to  each  hill,  and  the  plants  thinned  to  a  stand  after 
the  development  of  a  couple  of  rough  leaves. 

Instead  of  growing  in  the  hill,  and  leaving  two  plants 
in  each  as  is  usually  practised,  I  prefer  to  manure  in  the 
drill,  to  sow  the  seed  at  two  feet  apart,  and  to  leave,  final- 
ly, but  a  single  plant  every  two  feet.  If  sown  as  early  as 
March  1st,  it  is  advisable  to  make  at  least  a  second  sowing. 
The  cultivation  is  the  same  as  for  cucumbers. 

MARKETING. 

If  squashes  intended  for  shipment  to  the  Northern 
markets,  were  to  be  picked,  or  rather  cut  (for  they 
should  never  be  broken  from  the  plant)  in  as  green  and 
tender  condition,  as  for  the  local  demand,  they  would 
arrive  at  their  destination,  bruised,  blackened,  and  unsal- 
able. Even  if  they  could  be  delivered  in  sound  condition, 
squashes  in  such  an  early  stage  of  growth  would  not  suit 
the  trade.  The  proper  time  to  pick  them  is  when  they 
have  nearly  attained  their  full  growth,  and  for  the  scallop 
variety,  just  as  they  h^ve  lost  the  green,  and  are  acquiring 


TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

a  white  and  glossy  appearance.     At  this  time  the  rind  is 
still  penetrable  by  the  finger  nail. 

Squashes  may  be  shipped  either  in  barrels  or  crates, 
and  they  must  be  so  carefully  packed  as  not  to  be  bruised 
during  transportation. 

INSECTS. 

The  insects  infesting  the  squash  plant,  besides  the  al- 
ready mentioned  striped-bug  (Diabrotica  vittata),  which 
is  more  frequently  on  the  cucumber,  are: 

First — The  Twelve-spotted  Squash-beetle  (Diabrotica 
12-punctata). 

Second — The  Squash-bug  (Anasa  trislis). 

Third — The  Squash  vine-borer  (JZgeria  cucurUtce). 

Fourth — The  Melon- worm  (Phacellura  Jiyalinitalis). 

Fifth — The  Squash  Lady-bird  (Coccinella  borealis). 

The  injuries  inflicted  by,  and  the  remedies  applicable 
to  the  twelve-spotted  squash-beetle,  and  the  cucumber- 
beetle  or  striped-bug,  are  identical  and  are  described  un- 
der "  Cucumber." 

The  offensively  smelling,  rusty-black  colored,  hemip- 
terous  "squash -bug"  affects  the  plant  in  the  larval 
and  perfect  state.  It  destroys  the  leaves  in  a  manner 
similar  to  the  harlequin  cabbage-bug,  by  sucking  out 
their  juice.  The  yellowish  brown  eggs  are  laid  in  little 
clusters  on  the  underside  of  the  leaves.  Both  eggs  and 
insects  are  readily  detected,  and  may  be  hand-picked. 
The  squash  vine-borer  lives,  and  inflicts  its  injury  within 
the  stem  of  the  plant.  The  first  indication  of  its  presence 
is  the  wilting  of  the  vine.  The  larvae  may  be  killed  by 
destroying  such  vines,  to  prevent  the  increase  of  the  in- 
sect. The  melon- worm  (see  "Melon")  only  attacks  the 
later  crop  of  squashes,  and  should  be  destroyed  whenever 
found.  The  squash  lady-bird,  is  the  only  species  of  the 
Coccinellidae  which  does  not  befriend  the  farmer.  This 
insect  feeds  both  in  its  larval  and  perfect  state  upon  the 


SWEET-POTATO.  213 

leaves  of  the  squash.  The  eggs  are  deposited  in  groups 
on  the  under  surface  of  the  leaves.  The  color  is  dull 
yellow  with  nineteen  black  spots  on  the  thorax  and  wing 
covers.  Hand-picking  is  the  remedy. 


CHAPTER    XXVII. 

SWEET-POTATO  (Ipomcea  Batatas). 
Ibtate,  French ;  Susze  Kartoffel,  German. 

The  native  country  of  the  Sweet-potato  is  unknown, 
some  authors  accrediting  it  to  America,  and  others  to  the 
East  Indies.  It  was  used  as  a  delicacy  in  England,  long 
before  the  Irish  potato  was  known,  it  having  been  im- 
ported from  Spain.  The  plant  was  introduced  into  Eng- 
land by  Gerarde  in  1597.  Were  it  not  for  the  fact 
that  the  taste  for  this  potato  and  the  manner  of  cooking 
it  at  the  North  differ  so  much  from  that  common  at  the 
South,  the  sweet-potato  could  be  made  a  very  profit- 
able crop.  Here  it  is  baked,  while  at  the  North  it 
is  usually  boiled.  The  most  salable,  and,  in  fact,  the 
only  extensively  marketable  variety  in  any  of  the  North- 
ern markets,  is  the  "Delaware,"  "Jersey,"  or,  more 
correctly,  the  (( Nansemond,"  (at  one  time  called  the 
"Brimstone  "),  which  at  the  South  is  regarded  as  a  most 
inferior  sort,  unfit  for  the  table,  unsalable  in  local  mar- 
kets, and,  in  consequence  of  its  unproductiveness,  un- 
suitable for  cultivation.  While  boiling  will  make  any  of 
the  Yam  varieties  mushy,  baking  renders  the  Nansemond 
like  so  much  dry  flour.  Although  I  have  several  times 
received  nine  dollars  and  ten  dollars  per  barrel  for  the 
Nansemond  of  the  first  quality,  in  Boston  and  Baltimore, 


214  TRUCK-FARMIKG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

I  have  for  years  abandoned  the  crop.  Many  of  the  tubers 
do  not  attain  a  marketable  size  in  time  to  anticipate  the 
Virginia  crop,  or  before  August  1st,  and  therefore  the 
whole  fails  to  be  remunerative.  The  other  varieties  pro- 
duce few,  but  uniformly  large,  potatoes,  while  the  Nan- 
semond  has  a  great  number  of  small  ones.  Still,  circum- 
stances may  alter  the  case,  and  others  may  succeed  better 
with  this  variety  than  I  have  done.  The  sweet-potato 
would  be  then  a  profitable  crop.  The  other  varieties  may 
produce  from  two  hundred  to  eight  hundred  bushels  to 
the  acre;  but  several  of  the  Yam  varieties  split  open  and 
become  useless  when  highly  manured  and  grown  to  a  large 
size,  say  from  two  to  six  pounds.  This  objection  does 
not  apply  to  the  Pumpkin  Yam,  which  is  also  a  produc- 
tive and  good  table  potato  for  home  use. 

KAISINQ  THE   "DBAWS"   OB  SETS. 

The  sweet-potato  is  propagated  by  "  draws "  (or 
"  slips  "  in  the  up  country,  and  "  sets  "  or  plants  at  the 
North),  by  "  roots,"  as  the  Irish  potato,  and  by  "  slips" 
or  cuttings  of  the  vines  taken  from  the  growing  plants. 

The  crop  of  the  truck-farmer  is  grown  only  by 
"draws."  The  chief  danger  in  producing  these  consists 
in  killing  the  eyes  by  exposing  them  to  too  much  heat. 
In  this  latitude,  and  further  South,  they  are  more  safely 
grown  in  cold-frames,  prepared  about  the  last  of  Janu- 
ary. The  light,  warm  soil  of  a  cold  frame  having  been 
dug  up,  raked,  and  leveled,  the  seed  potatoes  are  placed 
on  the  surface,  a  half-inch  or  so  apart.  Specimens  of 
more  than  about  two  and  a  half  inches  in  diameter  may 
be  divided  in  two,  lengthwise,  and  the  halves  laid  on  the 
bed  with  the  cut  surface  down. 

If  the  weather  and  the  soil  are  dry,  the  potatoes  may 
be  watered  and  then  covered  evenly  with  about  three  and 
a  half  inches  of  light  soil.  The  soil  will  settle  a  little. 
The  frames  should  never  be  closely  covered  with  the  sash, 


SWEET-POTATO.  215 

even  at  night,  except  in  cold  weather,  and  never  in 
bright  sunshine.  In  dry  weather,  the  soil  may  require 
watering. 

In  case  the  draws  are  well  grown,  even  commencing  to 
"  run"  and  crowd  each  other,  hefore  the  season  admits 
of  their  being  transferred  to  the  open  ground,  they  may 
be  drawn  and  heeled-in  closely  in  another  cold  frame,  to 
await  favorable  weather.  In  the  meantime  other  sprouts 
will  form  for  another  pulling.  To  heel  them  in  most 
expeditiously,  a  wedge-shaped  opening  is  made  across  the 
bed,  by  plunging  the  spade  into  the  moist  soil  to  its  full 
depth,  and  pushing  it  backwards  and  forwards.  Such  a 
drill  will  hold  several  hundred  plants.  The  opening  of 
the  next  drill,  five  or  six  inches  distant,  will  press  the 
soil  to  the  roots  of  the  plants  in  the  first  drill.  They 
may  be  put  out  as  soon  as  danger  from  frost  is  supposed 
to  be  past;  in  this  latitude  about  April  1st,  and  earlier  at 
the  Southward.  They  may,  however,  precede  other  ten- 
der plants,  for  a  hoar  frost  will  not  kill  potato  draws  out- 
right if  they  were  properly  transplanted.  The  soil  best 
adapted  to  the  sweet-potato  is  a  warm,  well-drained, 
light,  sandy  loam,  or  pure  sand. 

PREPARING  THE   SOIL. 

This  is  an  exception  to  all  other  vegetables,  inasmuch 
that  the  soil  should  not  be  deeply  stirred.  A  hard  bot- 
tom to  the  row  is  needed  to  induce  a  short,  plump  growth 
of  the  potatoes.  On  deeply  plowed,  sandy  soil,  on  a 
porous  subsoil,  the  " Yellow  Red"  variety  has  grown 
over  a  yard  in  length  and  but  an  inch  or  less  in  diameter, 
and  very  few  well-shaped  potatoes  were  in  a  crop.  If  the 
surface  is  to  be  stirred,  it  should  be  done  by  a  small  plow 
as  superficially  as  possible,  or  by  means  of  a  horse-hoe. 
The  old-fashioned  "listing,"  where  the  plants  are  to  be 
put  out  on  an  elevated  ridge,  or  bed,  is  the  best  prepara- 
tion, the  only  objection  being,  that  in  case  it  is  necessary 


#16  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

to  cover  in  much  vegetable  matter,  the  beds  must  be 
made  high,  in  order  to  furnish  soil  enough  in  which  to 
set  the  plants.  Further  North  such  beds  are  necessary; 
but  for  this  latitude  and  to  the  Southward,  on  light, 
warm,  ^ell-drained  soils,  I  disapprove  of  high,  pointed 
beds,  because  of  their  drying  out  so  rapidly.  The  Nan- 
semond  will  not  thrive  in  heat  and  dryness.  Well-rotted 
stable  or  cow-pen  manure,  or  a  good  compost,  should  be 
spread  upon  the  list  at  the  rate  of  twenty-five  loads  to 
the  acre,  and  covered  by  the  plow.  On  clean  land,  with- 
out any  list,  it  is  spread  on  the  surface  in  rows,  three  and 
a  half  feet  apart,  and  covered  with  soil.  The  ridges 
should  be  raked  down  to  within  a  few  inches  above  the 
general  surface. 

Potash  is  especially  needed  in  the  soil  for  this  crop. 
The  best  manuring  that  can  be  given  to  land  for  the 
sweet-potato  is  by  cow-penning  it.  Apart  from  the 
adaptability  of  the  manure  for  the  needs  of  the  crop,  a 
special  benefit  results  from  the  compacting  of  the  soil  by 
the  trampling  of  the  cattle. 

No  variety  produces  a  more  satisfactory  draw  than  the 
Nansemond.  It  has  more  abundant  and  longer  roots 
than  any  other,  which  may  be  more  readily  pulled  from 
the  potato  without  disturbing  it  in  the  bed. 

TRANSPLANTING. 

The  draws  are  put  out  with  a  trowel,  or  a  flat  or  round 
dibble,  on  the  tops  of  the  ridges,  about  fifteen  inches 
apart,  and  inserted  one  or  two  joints  deeper  than  they 
originally  grew.  They  are  thus  not  only  likely  to  bear 
better,  but  are  safer  from  injury  by  a  severe  white  frost; 
they  will  not  be  killed  outright,  but  will  sprout  again 
from  the  buds  on  the  stems  that  are  below  the  surface. 
In  subsequent  culture,  superficial  hoeing,  with  one  plow- 
ing, as  the  vines  commence  to  run,  will  suffice,  care  being 
observed  never  to  cover  any  part  of  a  vine. 


SWEET-POTATO.  21? 

DIGGING  THE   CROP. 

When  the  crop  is  to  be  dug,  if  the  vines  are  not  very 
abundant  (a  luxuriant  growth  above  ground  is  by  no 
means  a  sure  indication  of  a  good  crop  below  it),  they 
may  be  torn  away  by  the  plow,  the  point  not  being 
permitted  to  enter  the  ground.  This  is  only  practi- 
cable with  the  Nansemond  and  other  small-vined  varie- 
ties. The  "  Peabody,"  "  White  Yam,"  and  some  others, 
have  vines  that  are  too  thick  and  strong.  If  the  growth 
is  too  heavy,  they  must  be  stripped  with  sharp  hoes; 
when  the  rows  may  be  sided  by  the  plow  and  the  crop 
dug  with  steel  prong-hoes.  The  gathering,  assorting, 
and  packing  are  the  same  as  in  the  case  of  the  Irish 
potato,  with  the  exception  that  sweet  potatoes  are  less 
susceptible  of  injury  by  sunshine,  and  they  may  be  ex- 
posed long  enough  for  the  soil  to  become  dry  and  rub  off 
in  the  handling. 

POTATOES   FOR   SEED. 

The  proper  time  to  put  up  seed  potatoes  for  the  next 
crop  is  as  late  as  possible  in  the  fall,  or  after  the  first 
white  frost  has  touched  the  leaves.  The  opinion  gen- 
erally prevails  that  potatoes  grown  from  draws  will  not 
keep  well.  Probably  it  is  so,  only  because  such  are 
over-ripe.  Seed  potatoes  are  saved  from  plantings  of 
slips  or  cuttings.  The  earlier  they  can  be  made,  as  soon 
as  the  vines  have  grown  long  enough  and  the  weather 
is  sufficiently  wet,  generally  in  this  latitude  about  June 
1st,  the  better.  The  longest,  and,  therefore,  hardiest 
vines  being  selected,  an  evenly  laid  bundle  as  large  as 
the  hand  can  grasp  is  placed  on  a  board,  and  cut  with 
a  sharp  hatchet  in  lengths  of  about  fifteen  or  eighteen 
inches,  rejecting  the  delicate  end  pieces.  These  cuttings 
are  laid  across  the  ridges  at  twelve  or  fifteen  inches 
apart,  and  pressed  down  into  the  soil  by  means  of  a 
10 


218  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

notched  dibble  (figure  60).  The  vine  is  fixed  about 
its  middle  in  the  notch,  thus  making,  as  it  were,  a 
double  cutting.  If  vines  are  scarce,  single  cuttings  may 
be  made  of  four  or  five  joints,  the  lower  three  leaves 
being  cut  away.  These  may  be  planted  with  a  com- 
mon dibble. 

The  cultivation  is  the  same  as  before.  The  seed  may 
be  preserved  in  a  dry  cellar,  but  is  usually  put  up  in  po- 
tato banks.  The  surface  in  a  dry  situation 
is  leveled  and  covered  to  the  depth  of  four 
of  five  irfches,  with  dry  pine  straw;  the  po- 
tatoes are  placed  upon  this,  storing  not 
more  than  fifteen  or  twenty  bushels  in  each 
bank.  Pile  them  in  as  sharp  a  cone  as  pos- 
sible, and  cover  first  with  pine  straw,  then 
closely  with  corn  stalks,  in  order  to  shed 
Fig.  60.— SWEET-  tne  rajns  an(j  finally  with  five  or  six  inches 

POTATO  DIBBLE.  '       .  ? 

of  soil.  This  covering  will  absorb  the  mois- 
ture which  escapes  from  the  potatoes,  but  large  banks 
should  be  provided  with  a  ventilating  hole  at  the  top, 
the  admission  of  rain  water  being  prevented  by  a  cover. 

INSECTS. 

The  insects  that  attack  the  sweet-potato  are: 

First. — Haltica  cucumeris,  (Cucumber  Flea-beetle). 

Second. — Sphinx  cingulata,  (Sweet-potato-moth). 

Third — Cassida  bivittata,  (Two-striped  Tortoise-beetle). 

Fourth. — Cassida  aurichakea,  (Golden  Tortoise-beetle). 

Fifth. — Cassida  guttata,  (Mottled  Tortoise-beetle). 

Sixth — Cassida  nigripes,( Black-legged  Tortoise-beetle). 

Seventh. — Chelymorpha  cassidea. 

The  first-named  and  smallest  of  these  (described  under 
"Cucumber")  is  the  most  injurious,  attacking  the  few 
leaves  of  the  young  plants  as  soon  as  they  are  put  out. 
The  remedy  for  the  flea-beetles, — dusting  with  lime,  soot, 
or  Paris  green — if  very  abundant,  may  be  resorted  to. 


SWEET-POTATO. 


219 


The    large    green    worm    of    the    sweet-potato-moth 
(Sphinx  cingulatd)  very  much   resembles    the  tomato- 


Fig.  61.— TWO-STRIPED  TORTOISE-BEETLE  ( Cassida  bivittato). 
1:  Larva,  natural  size .-  2,  Larva  ;  3,  Pupa ;  4,  Beetle,  all  magnified. 

worm,  but  is  not  in  sufficient  force  to  do  much  injury. 
The  moth  is  especially  distinguished  from  Sphinx  Carolina 


Fig.  62.— GOLDEN  TORTOISE-BEETLE  ( Cassida  auricMlcea). 
a,  Larva,  natural  size  ;  b,  enlarged,  with  dung  removed ;  c,  Pupa ;  d,  Beetle. 

and  Sphinx  quinquemaculata  by  its  pink-striped  under- 
wings.     The  larvae  of  the  tortoise-beetles,  although  some- 


Fig.  63.— MOTTLED  TORTOISE-BEETLE  ( Cassidci  guttata). 
a,  Larva ;  b,  Pupa. 

times  abundant,  are  not  sufficiently  so  to  diminish  the 
crop  of   the  truck-farmer.     They  have,  like  those  of 


TRUCK-PARMIKG  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

Lema  trilineata,  the  peculiar  habit  of  covering  themselves 
with  their  own  excrement. 

The  past  season,  I  noticed,  for  the  first  time,  a  number 
of  the  perfect  insects  of  Clielymorplia  cassidea  feeding  up- 
on the  sweet-potato.  It  is  said  to  feed  upon  the  milk- 
weed, and,  I  believe,  has  been  found  on  the  wild  convol- 
vulus, or  morning  glory.  It  is  a  yellow,  oblong-oval, 
beetle,  somewhat  similar  to  the  tortoise-beetle  in  form, 
about  three-eighths  of  an  inch  long,  with  a  pair  of  black 
dots  on  each  side  of  the  thorax,  and  six  black  spots  on 
each  wing-cover. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 


THE  TOMATO  (Lycopersicum  esculentum). 

Tomate,  French ;   Liebes-Apfel,  German ;   Appeltjes   des   liefde,    Dutch ; 
Ibmo  cToro,  Italian  ;  Tomates,  Spanish. 

The  order  Solanacece  or  Nightshade  family  contains 
over  twelve  hundred  species,  among  which  are  three  of  our 
most  wholesome  and  important  vegetables — the  Irish 
potato,  the  tomato,  and  the  egg-plant.  It  also  includes 
the  red  pepper  and  the  narcotics,  bittersweet,  belladonna, 
Jamestown  or  "  Jimson  weed,"  the  tobacco  and  others. 

The  Tomato  was  first  introduced  into  Europe  from 
South  America  in  1596;  but  for  many  years  it  was  ex- 
clusively cultivated  as  an  ornament  to  the  flower-garden. 
It  came  very  gradually  into  use  in  the  preparation 
of  sauces  and  in  soups,  having  attained  popularity  only 
within  the  last  forty  years.  In  the  north  of  the  European 
continent  and  in  England  it  is  not  yet  popularized;  while 
in  France  and  Italy,  particularly  near  Home  and  Naples, 


THE  TOMATO. 

it  is  produced  in  large  quantities.  It  is  a  strange  fact 
that,  in  Sicily,  the  tomato,  when  ripe,  becomes  sour  and 
so  unfit  for  use  that  the  island  has  to  be  supplied  from 
the  vicinity  of  Naples  on  the  neighboring  mainland. 

Like  all  vegetables,  grown  on  such  an  extensive  scale, 
and  so  well  adapted  for  transportation  to  distant  markets, 
the  prices  the  tomato  commands  are  very  variable.  The 
farm-gardeners  on  Long  Island  and  other  points  in  the 
vicinity  of  New  York  rarely  receive  better  prices  than 
from  twenty-five  cents  to  one  dollar  per  bushel,  while 
fine  stock  arriving  early  on  a  bare  market,  has  occasion- 
ally brought  very  high  prices.  Thus,  some  years  ago,  I 
received  sixteen  dollars  per  bushel-crate  in  Baltimore 
(a,t  the  rate  of  eight  cents  each),  and  in  Boston  and  Balti- 
more, which  are  the  best  markets  for  this  vegetable,  I 
have  frequently  received  eight  and  ten  dollars  per  bushel- 
crate.  Now  that  Florida  anticipates  more  Northern 
localities  in  shipping  tomatoes  (though  very  frequently 
of  inferior  quality,  sufficient  care  not  having  been  paid 
to  assorting  and  packing),  these  prices  are  past.  The 
returns  no\v  range  between  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  and 
five  dollars  per  crate,  according  to  the  length  of  the  ship- 
ping season.  The  yield  is  from  one  hundred  to  two  hun- 
dred crates  per  acre.  At  the  North,  where  five  thousand 
plants  are  required  to  the  acre,  and  where  the  bearing 
and  picking  season  is  longer,  four  hundred  bushels  are 
obtainable. 

VAKIETIES. 

The  great  number  of  varieties  enumerated  in  seed  cata- 
logues has  only  interest  for  the  amateur.  There  is  little 
or  no  difference  in  the  time  of  maturing  the  fruit,  what- 
ever claim  may  be  made  in  the  advertisements.  This  is 
probably  owing  to  the  neglect  to  save  seed  repeatedly  from 
the  choicest  and  earliest  fruit.  A  good  market  variety 
should  be  of  medium  size,  round  and  smooth,  with  £e^ 


222  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

seeds ;  it  must  be  firm,  must  ripen  evenly  and  have  a 
bright  red  color.  The  "  Acme,"  "  Livingston's  Beauty" 
and  "Perfection,"  the  " Bound  Smooth  Red,"  and  the 
"  Hathaway  "  fill  these  requirements  ;  the  first-named 
is  at  present  preferred.  The  "Trophy"  and  "Fejee 
Island  "  are  both  of  excellent  quality  and  appearance,  but 
the  first  is  objectionable  on  account  of  its  too  great  size 
(not  satisfactorily  measurable  by  the  quart),  and  the  lat- 
ter on  account  of  its  shape.  The  "Pear-shaped"  and 
the  "Yellow"  and  "Ked  Cherry"  are  only  used  for 
pickles  and  preserves. 

SELECTION    OF   SOIL. 

The  tomato  will  better  resist  drouth  than  it  will  too 
much  rain,  and  indeed  better  than  most  vegetables;  the 
soil,  therefore,  best  adapted  to  this  crop  is  a  sandy 
one,  or  a  high  sandy  loam.  On  low  ground,  well 
drained  or  not,  in  dry  or  wet  seasons,  the  plants 
are  liable  to  die  out  about  the  commencement  of 
bearing.  The  fruit  will  even  rot  on  high  sandy 
soil,  when  the  plants  are  manured  with  muck  that  has 
been  exposed  to  the  atmosphere  for  eight  months.  The 
tomato  is  not  a  gross  feeder;  it  prefers  a  poor  soil  to  one 
that  is  too  fertile,  nor  will  the  plant  bear  any  considerable 
application  of  stimulating  fertilizers,  such  as  Peruvian 
guano,  hoof -trimmings,  fish  scrap,  etc.,  which  will 
certainly  cause  it  to  run  to  vine,  and  to  make  the  fruit, 
particularly  the  first,  decay  before  attaining  full  size. 
Those  which  do  mature  will  be  watery  and  not  carry  well. 
A  good  crop  can  be  made  with  one  shovelful  of  well -rotted 
stable  or  cow  manure,  or  good  compost,  to  the  hill,  or 
upon  a  soil  which  has  recently  produced  a  well  manured 
crop.  In  the  last  case  no  manuring  would  be  needed. 

SOWING   THE   SEED. 

Slow  growth  being  requisite  to  produce  good  stocky 
plants,  the  seed  should  be  sown  about  January  1st  on  un' 


THE  TOMATO.  223 

manured  soil,  in  cold  frames,  in  drills  across  the  beds  four 
inches  apart ;  and  earlier  or  later,  according  to  the  de- 
gree of  latitude  south  or  north  of  Savannah.  On  heav- 
ier soils,  use  a  slight  bottom  heat,  light  manuring,  and 
sow  ten  days  earlier.  If,  after  sowing,  the  weather 
should  be  cold  and  cloudy,  the  ground  should  be  kept 
warm  by  means  of  the  glass;  but  if  warm,  with  much 
sunshine,  the  frames  must  be  kept  open  or  shaded,  and 
the  soil  moist,  until  the  plants  have  come  up.  Under 
the  shade  and  moisture  of  the  front  boards  of  the  frame 
the  plants  are  apt  to  damp  off,  and  to  grow  small  and 
slender  under  the  reflection  of  the  sun  near  the  back.  It 
is  therefore  advisable  to  sow  the  seed  more  thinly  near 
the  front  and  back  than  in  the  middle  of  the  bed.  To 
avoid  a  too  spindling  and  crowded  growth,  the  plants 
should  be  thinned  as  soon  as  they  are  large  enough  to  be 
handled  with  safety,  and  transplanted  to  fill  vacant  spaces 
in  other  cold  frames,  or  thrown  away.  A  tomato  plant 
should  never  be  put  out  in  the  open  field,  if  avoidable, 
without  having  been  previously  transplanted.  When  the 
plant  is  pricked  out  deeper  than  it  stood  in  the  seed  bed, 
it  will  throw  out  numerous  small  fibrous  roots  along  the 
stem  and  at  the  root,  to  which  the  soil  will  adhere,  when 
again  taken  up;  and  will  therefore  be  apt  to  suffer  less 
check  at  the  final  transplanting.  When  about  four  inches 
high,  near  the  middle  of  February,  pricking  out  into 
other  cold  frames,  with  the  soil  as  in  the  seed  bed,  should 
be  commenced.  Set  the  plants  down  to  the  seed  leaves 
at  three  or  four  inches  apart,  or  if  very  large  plants  are 
desired,  more  space  may  be  allowed  to  each.  At  those 
distances,  each  three  by  six-foot  sash  will  cover  from  one 
hundred  and  sixty-five  to  two  hundred  and  ninety  plants, 
and  an  acre  will  require  the  use  of  at  least  eleven  sashes. 
A  very  stocky  growth  can  be  obtained  by  stopping  or 
cutting  off  the  tops  of  the  plants  just  above  the  seed 
leaves,  as  soon  as  vigorous  growth  has  commenced.  They 


224 


TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 


will  throw  out  a  stem  at  the  axil  of  each  seed  leaf ; 
thus  producing,  as  it  were,  two  plants  from  each  root, 
which,  when  planted  out  deeply,  will  support  each  other 
and  tend  to  increase  the  yield.  If  this  is  done  before  the 
plants  have  taken  root,  only  one  bud  is  likely  to  develop. 
If  the  pricked  out  plants  become  too  crowded,  pinch 


Fig.   64.— BOX  FOR  TOMATO  PLANTS. 

off  some  of  the  lower  leaves  to  promote  a  stockier  growth 
and  cause  side  shoots  to  push.  It  may  pay  those,  who 
can  ship  the  earliest  tomatoes,  to  prick  out  into  pots  or 
into  boxes,  plunging  the  boxes  in  cold  frames. 

BOXES  FOR  TOMATO   PLANTS. 

Before  shipments  from  Florida  by  their  greater  earli- 
ness  anticipated  my  crops  of  Tomatoes,  I  used  boxes  like 


THE  TOMATO. 

those  in  fig.  64,  holding  twenty  plants  each.  These 
measured  twenty-three  and  three-fourths  by  eighteen 
inches  by  seven  inches  high;  they  were  made  with  two 
end  boards  eighteen  by  seven  inches,  and  three-inch  laths 
twenty-three  and  three-fourths  inches  long.  When  made 
of  these  dimensions  and  placed  in  contact  in  rows  of  three 
boxes  across  the  bed,  a  cold  frame  six  feet  wide  will  rest 
with  its  upper  and  lower  edges  upon  the  adjoining  end 
boards  of  the  boxes.  The  boxes  may  be  less  than  seven 
inches  deep.  They  are  filled  with  soil  which  has 
been  screened  or  is  naturally  free  from  roots,  sticks,  peb- 
bles, etc.  Before  removal  from  the  frames,  the  soil  must 
be  saturated  with  water,  when  the  plants  can  be  cut  out 
:n  the  field  with  a  sharp-edged  brick-layer's  trowel  and 
placed  with  blocks  of  soil  adhering  to  the  roots,  in 
squares  previously  made  by  the  plow,  using  a  double 
mould-board.  A  hoeful  of  soil  drawn  to  each  side  of 
the  plant  finishes  the  planting.  In  this  manner  plants 
may  be  put  out  on  the  highest  ground,  in  the  driest 
weather,  and  during  the  hottest  midday  sunshine,  without 
wilting  or  the  slightest  apparent  check  to  growth. 

TKANSPLANTING. 

If,  however,  the  plants  pricked  out  into  cold  frames 
are  taken  up  carefully,  with  as  much  moistened  soil  ad- 
hering to  the  roots  as  possible,  they  may  be  planted  out 
with  the  dibble  or  trowel,  without  loss,  when  the  soil  is 
only  moist  enough  for  the  holes  to  be  made,  the  recom- 
mendations given  in  the  chapter  on  "  Transplanting," 
being  closely  observed. 

The  distances  at  which  the  plants  are  put  out  will  de- 
pend upon  the  fertility  of  the  land  and  the  variety  ;  the 
usual  distances  are  three  to  three  and  one-half  feet  in  the 
rows,  which  are  from  four  to  six  feet  apart.  The  season 
and  danger  of  frost  will  determine  when  to  put  out 
the  plants,  which  is  about  April  1st.  A  tomato  plant, 


226  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE  SOUTH. 

however,  if  of  stocky  growth,  will  resist  a  slight  frost, 
and  the  earlier  it  can  be  put  out  the  better.  If  white  frost 
be  apprehended,  the  plants  may  be  protected  when  grown 
on  a  small  scale,  by  means  of  boxes  or  any  other  screen, 
or  by  smoke;  but  when  on  a  large  scale  it  is  cheaper 
to  have  a  surplus  on  hand,  in  case  of  loss  by  frost. 

CULTIVATION. 

The  first  workings  are  done  with  a  cultivator  or  a  horse- 
hoe,  running  both  ways.  The  plow  and  hoe  leave  the  crop 
free  from  weeds,  and  on  wide  beds,  at  the  time  picking 
commences,  the  soil  will  be  well  drawn  up  to  the  stems, 
but  without  having  covered  up  the  young  shoots  issuing 
from  the  main  stem,  and  which  will  bear  fruit.  Train- 
ing the  vines  to  a  single  pole  or  to  two  placed  parallel, 
or  to  a  trellis,  may  be  practiced  on  a  small  scale.  Prun- 
ing the  vines  is  not  advisable.  The  fruit  matures  in  this 
latitude  about  June  1st.  Below  is  a  table  showing  the 
dates  of  sowing,  pricking  out,  planting  and  harvest  for 
seven  consecutive  years: 


Dates  of  sowing. 
Jan.  14. 
Jan.  14. 
Jan.  9. 
Jan.  4. 
Jan.  5. 
Jan.  8. 
Dec.  19. 

of  pricking  out. 
Feb.  15. 
Feb.  17. 
Feb.  20. 
Feb.  26. 
Feb.  28. 
Feb.  12. 
Feb.  12. 

of  planting. 
March  27. 
March  16. 
March  26. 
April  1. 
March  24. 
April  1. 
March  19. 

of  harvest. 
June  5. 
June  7. 
June  3. 
May  30. 
May  22. 
May  28. 
May  31. 

PICKING   AND   PACKING. 

The  distance  from  market,  or  time  required  in  trans- 
portation, will  determine  the  stage  of  ripeness  at  which  the 
fruit  is  to  be  picked.  Fruit  exposed  fairly  to  the  sun  will 
show  the  commencement  of  the  ripening  process  on  the 
upper  surface,  while  that  in  the  dense  shade  of  luxuri- 
ant foliage  will  first  rsdden  on  the  flower  end.  In  the 
vicinity  of  Charleston  and  Savannah,  the  proper  stage  has 
been  reached,  when  the  tomato  has  attained  a  yellow 
cast;  and  in  Florida,  as  soon  as  it  is  full-grown  and 


THE  TOMATO.  227 

shows  the  least  sign  of  " turning."  Generally  the  pick- 
ing is  done  there,  when  the  tomato  is  much  too  green  to 
ripen  properly,  and  at  the  cost  of  the  producer.  The 
pickers  should  not  place  leaky  or  decaying  fruit  in  their 
baskets  to  soil  the  rest.  Tomatoes,  like  all  other  stock 
for  which  good  prices  are  expected,  should  be  carefully 
assorted,  both  as  to  quality  and  degree  of  ripeness,  all 
inferior  or  worm-eaten  fruit  being  strictly  excluded.  To- 
matoes should  not  be  emptied  out  of  the  baskets  into 
the  crates  and  shaken  down  like  potatoes,  but  packed 
singly,  in  order  that  they  may  lie  compactly,  so  that 
upon  arrival  in  market,  each  package  may  present  a  full 
and  unshaken  appearance.  In  the  moie  careful  packing 
practised  in  later  years,  the  fruit  has  been  wrapped  in 
paper.  This  wrapping  protects  the  remainder  of  the 
fruit  from  leaking  or  decay  in  the  crate.  Paper  for  the 
purpose  should  be  porous,  soft  and  strong.  Pieces  seven 
inches  square  (forty-nine  square  inches)  will  answer  for 
fruit  of  medium  size. 

A  tomato  as  it  is  picked  from  the  plant  may  fre- 
quently present  a  perfectly  sound  appearance,  until  the 
stem  is  removed,  when  it  is  found  to  contain  a  well- 
grown  worm  of  Heliothis  armigera  the  Cotton-boll 
worm ;  the  insect,  while  very  small,  having  penetrated 
the  fruit  under  the  calyx.  A  reason  for  rubbing  off  all 
the  stems,  is,  the  danger  of  their  bruising  other  fruit  or 
tearing  the  wrapping  paper.  In  our  Southern  climate, 
an  early  tomato  plant  will  not  continue  in  bearing  be- 
yond the  first  part  of  August ;  but  a  succession  may  be 
secured  by  putting  out  plants  in  July  from  seed  sown  in 
May,  or  early  in  June.  From  this  crop,  grown  in  hot 
weather,  however,  neither  the  yield  nor  the  size  of  the 
fruit  will  be  as  satisfactory  as  the  earlier  one.  Plants 
may  also  be  propagated  from  cuttings  of  old  vines,  if  set 
out  in  moist  ground  ;  but  many  frequently  fail  to  take 
root. 


228  TBUCK-FAKMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

SAVING   THE    SEEDS. 

For  seed,  the  earliest  well-matured,  and  in  every  re* 
spect,  the  choicest  fruit  should  be  selected,  and  those 
which  were  grown  on  soil  best  adapted  to  the  tomato. 
As  the  objectionable  knobby  fruit  is  produced  from  dou- 
ble flowers,  and  these  are  said  to  result  from  the  use  of 
old  seed,  the  fruit  from  which  to  save  seed  should  only 
be  gathered  from  plants  raised  from  fresh  seed.  The 
fruit,  when  soft  arid  over-ripe,  should  be  mashed  in  any 
convenient  vessel  and  stirred  daily  for  three  or  four  days, 
when  the  seed  may  be  washed  from  the  pulp  and  dried. 

INSECTS. 

Young  tomato  plants  are  liable  to  be  cut  down  by  sev- 
eral kinds  of  cut-worms.*  During  the  Spring  of  1882, 
the  green  larvse  of  Sphinx  Carolina,  and  Sphinx  quinque- 
maculata  were  very  numerous  and  destructive;  but  gener- 
ally, owing  to  paucity  of  number,  the  damage  is  slight. 
More  severe  injury  is  done,  and  particularly  to  the 
earlier  and  therefore  most  valuable  part  of  the  crop,  by 
the  caterpillar  of  the  Cotton-boll  worm,  (or  the  "  Corn- 
seed  worm,"  Heliothis  armigera.)  They  rarely,  and 
only  when  very  young,  touch  the  leaves ;  but  penetrate 
the  green  fruit,  one  worm  often  boring  into  several. 
Hand-picking  in  either  case  is  the  only  remedy.  Just 
before  the  first  picking  for  market,  all  the  punctured 
fruit  should  be  gathered  and  either  fed  to  the  stock  or 
destroyed. 

Sometimes  a  large  green  worm  may  be  found  with  one 
or  two  of  what  appear  to  be  very  minute  eggs,  adhering 
tightly  to  the  skin  at  one  of  the  rings  of  the  body, 
or  covered  apparently,  with  eggs.  Such  a  worm  should 
not  be  destroyed.  The  supposed  eggs  are  the  chrysalides 
of  an  Ichneumon  fly,  its  appropriate  insect  enemy. 


*See  Chapter  on  Insects. 


THE  WATERMELON.  229 

CHAPTER    XXIX. 

THE  WATERMELON  (Citrullus  vulgaris). 

Ibsteque,    French ;    WJassr-Milons*    German  ;     Water    meloen,     Dutch 
Cocomero,    Italian. 

The  Watermelon  was  probably  the  melon  of  the  Bible, 
and,  as  has  been  incidentally  stated,  was  known  to  the 
Jews  in  Egypt. 

Watermelons  may  be  more  or  less  successfully  grown 
from  Key  West  to  New  Jersey,  and  from  as  far  south  in 
the  interior  of  Florida  as  transportation  facilities  enable 
the  farmers  to  ship  the  crop  profitably.  Commencing 
about  May  15th,  they  are  forwarded  to  the  North  by 
steamships  and  to  the  North-west  by  rail. 

Owing  to  the  size  and  nature  of  the  fruit,  it  has  to  be 
shipped  in  bulk,  and,  even  with  careful  handling,  in 
transit,  accidental  breakages  will  occur;  but,  if  the  en- 
tire crop,  exclusive  of  losses  by  unavoidable  causes,  could 
reach  the  market,  none  would,  under  favorable  circum- 
stances, pay  better.* 

*  The  losses  upon  watermelons  shipped  to  Boston  have  been  so  genera^ 
that  the  subject  has  been  discussed  by  the  "  Vegetable  and  Fruit  Grow- 
ers' Association,"  with  a  view  to  provide  a  remedy.  G,  R.  McRee.  Esq., 
of  Lowndes  County,  Georgia,  one  of  the  largest  growers  of  melons  for 
shipment  to  the  North,  wrote  to  the  author  in  September  last  as  follows: 
"  I  have  almost  quit  shipping  to  Boston  ou  account  of  the  heavy  losses. 
I  have  lost  as  much  as  fifty  per  cent,  of  some  of  my  consignments,  and 
never  expect  to  get  off  with  less  than  twenty  per  cent." — In  December 
last  Mr.  McRee  wrote:  "  You  are  at  liberty  to  use  any  statement  from 
me,  in  reference  to  the  loss  on  steamers,  in  your  forthcoming  work.  My 
losses  by  the  Boston  ships  have  been  so  heavy  that  I  have  very  nearly 
quit  the  line.  I  sent  only  two  or  three  consignments  by  it  the  past  sea- 
son, and  these  were  shipped  by  the  forwarding  agent  of  the  railroad  be- 
cause the  New  York  ship  was  missed." 

LA.TEK  NOTE. — I  am  constrained  by  a  sense  of  justice,  to  state  that 
after  the  above  was  in  type,  the  agents  called  upon  me,  as  President  ot 
the  "  Vegetable  and  Fruit  Growers'  Association  of  Chatham  County," 
and  promised  that  at  both  ends  of  the  line,  with  the  finer  ships  and  new 
etaffs  of  officers  and  crews,  they  would  endeavor  to  remove  the  cause 
of  complaint. — A.  O. 


230  TRUCK-FAKMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

AVOIDABLE   LOSSES. 

The  melon,  like  most  other  plants,  is  subject  to  insect 
depredations  ;  but  it  is  not  from  losses  to  the  farmer  by 
these  minute  objects,  nor  by  the  unfavorableness  of  sea- 
sons (although  the  melon  is  among  the  most  uncertain 
of  crops),  nor  by  any  of  the  other  contingencies  which  so 
often  make  the  profits  of  the  agriculturist  doubtful, 
that  his  success  and  his  income  are  diminished;  but  by 
depredations  and  theft.  After  his  crop  is  harvested, 
quick  and  safe  transportation  to  market  is  a  chief  factor 
in  successful  truck-farming.  Without  it  the  industry 
must  fail. 

With  the  transportation  lines  from  Savannah,  I 
have  had  an  experience  of  twenty-seven  years.  In  that 
time  I  have  been  the  largest,  and  am  now  the  oldest 
grower  of  melons  in  this  immediate  region,  and  know 
whereof  I  write.  Previous  to  the  war,  the  pilfering  of 
melons  was  carried  on  to  such  an  extent  that  two  Sea 
Island  cotton  planters,  my  relatives,  who  planted  them 
most  extensively,  were  by  self -protection  compelled  to 
admit  the  captains,  or  pursers  of  the  steamships,  into  co- 
partnership, allowing  them  a  part  of  the  profits.  Then, 
and  then  only,  could  melons  be  shipped  with  safety. 
Since  that  time,  a  vast  improvement  has  been  made.  If 
it  be  a  difficult  matter  to  prevent  these  losses  to  the  ship- 
per, the  agency  shows  a  praiseworthy  endeavor  to  curtail 
them,  and  there  seems  to  be  a  fair  prospect  of  still  further 
future  improvement. 

The  two  Northern  markets,  where  melons  invariably 
command  the  highest  prices,  are  Boston  and  New  York. 
Under  the  same  conditions  of  safety  the  preference  would 
be  decidedly  in  favor  of  the  former ;  but  the  handling 
has  been  so  careless,  and  the  "  shortage  "  so  outrageous, 
as  to  discourage  shipments  to  that  market. 

I  have  lost  as  many  as  two  hundred  and  twenty-nine 


THE  WATERMELON.  231 

melons  from  a  single  shipment.  The  great  loss  is  not 
under  the  head  of  specked  or  decayed  (principally  owing 
to  rough  handling),  'but  missing.  The  melon  is  not  an 
evanescent  object  which  disappears  without  trace  like  ex- 
ploded gun-cotton. 

A  fair  yield  to  the  acre  is  one  thousand  melons,  large 
enough  for  shipment,  or  ranging  from  fifteen  pounds  up- 
wards. In  consequence  of  a  disease  which  has  been  killing 
the  vines  of  late  years,  about  the  time  the  fruit  is  form- 
ing, the  crop  more  frequently  falls  below  than  exceeds 
that  number.  I  have  examined  the  roots  and  vines  in 


Fig.    65.— WATERMELON— "  RATTLESNAKE. 


vain  for  insects,  to  account  for  this  disease,  and  have  not 
yet  been  able  to  ascertain  the  cause. 

It  is  probably  not  attributable  to  an  insect  in  the  root, 
like  the  larvae  of  the  striped-bug  in  the  cucumber,  for 
the  disease  sometimes  first  manifests  itself  in  a  single 
side-runner. 

My  melons  sold  the  past  season  in  the  New  York  and 
Boston  markets  at  from  twenty-five  to  fifty  dollars  per 
hundred.  .,.- 

VARIETIES. 

A  variety  to  be  fit  for  shipment  should  be  large,  with 
a  rind  thick  enough  to  carry  well,  should  not  "  burn  "  or 
become  discolored  in  the  field  by  the  hot  sun,  and  should 
"cut"  red  throughout,  without  a  lighter  colored  hard 


232  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

"core/'  At  present  "Kolb's  Gem,"  and  the  "Rattle- 
snake," which  is  also  known  by  several  local  names,  fill 
these  requirements  better  than  any  other. 

SOIL  AND   PREPARATION. 

The  soil  best  adapted  to  the  watermelon  is  a  light,  dry, 
warm  sand,  lately  cleared,  or  which  has  not  been  culti- 
vated for  at  least  three  years. 

This  peculiar  adaptability  of  new  ground  is  probably 
attributable  to  the  opening  of  the  soil  by  the  decaying 
roots  of  vegetation.  Whatever  compacts  the  soil  is  in- 
jurious to  the  crop.  A  rainy  season,  owing  partly  to  the 
consolidating  of  the  land,  is  most  unfavorable  to  success. 
On  new  ground,  the  first  formed  young  fruit  are  more 
apt  to  become  developed,  and  in  larger  numbers,  and 
particularly  are  they  all  liable  to  shrivel  and  drop  off  or 
old  recently  cultivated  land  after  a  heavy  rain  or  frequent 
lighter  ones.  This  applies  particularly  to  the  sandy  land 
of  the  coast.  Notwithstanding  the  very  succulent  char- 
acter of  the  fruit,  wet  weather  is  more  damaging  than 
drouth. 

The  field  having  been  plowed  and  harrowed,  it  is  laid 
off,  according  to  the  usual  custom,  ten  or  twelve  feet 
each  way,  to  mark  the  hills.  For  this  purpose,  a  double 
mould-board  plow  is  the  best  implement.  It  makes 
straight  smooth  furrows  and  wider  openings  at  their 
crossings  for  the  hills.  Instead  of  these  distances  I  prefer 
to  make  my  hills  six  by  twelve  feet  apart,  and  leave  but  a 
single  plant  in  each,  rather  than  two  plants.  With  the 
same  average  area  for  each  vine  I  conceive  that  the  single 
plants  will  produce  a  greater  number  of  large  melons  to 
the  acre.  The  openings  made  by  the  plow  are  enlarged 
to  about  three  feet  in  diameter,  and  deepened  below  the 
depth  of  the  surface  soil,  and  one  or  two  shovelfuls  of 
decayed  stable,  cow  or  hog  manure,  the  latter  to  be 
preferred,  are  dug  up  and  intimately  mixed  with  the  sub- 


THE  WATERMELON.  233 

soil,  by  means  of  hoe,  spade,  or  digging-fork.  The  hoe, 
although  not  so  effective,  is  the  more  expeditious  tool 
in  the  hands  of  negro  laborers.  Green  stable  manure  01 
any  other  kind  that  is  fermenting,  or  heating,  is  not 
suitable  for  melons  on  light  land.  If  in  place  of  the 
above,  a  compost  of  muck  or  woods-earth  with  cotton- 
seed meal  or  fish  guano  is  used,  the  quantity  should  be 
two  shovelfuls,  containing  about  one  pound  of  the  meal 
or  guano.  When  manure  is  plentiful  enough,  it  may  be 
applied  in  the  drill  or  even  broadcast,  notwithstanding 
the  distances  of  the  plants,  for  most  of  the  roots  of 
the  melon  plant  are  long  surface  roots.  Manured  only  in 
the  hill,  the  plant  derives  less  benefit  from  the  fertilizer. 

SOWING   THE   SEED. 

A  flat  hill,  elevated  two  or  three  inches  above  the  general 
surface,  is  made  over  the  manure  with  the  removed  surface 
soil,  and  in  the  middle  of  each  the  first  sowing  of  from  six 
to  ten  seeds  is  made,  one  or  two  inches  deep,  according  to 
the  nature  and  degree  of  moisture  of  the  soil.  As  in 
the  case  of  cucumbers,  I  make  two  more  sowings  at  in- 
tervals of  a  week,  putting  in  three  or  four  seeds  at  each,  at 
which  rate  it  will  require  from  two  and  one-half  to  three 
pounds  of  seed  per  acre.  A  temperature  of  about  sixty- 
five  degrees  is  required  to  sprout  melon  seed  ;  and  there  is 
rarely  anything  gained  in  this  crop  by  making  the  sow- 
ings too  early,  as  cold  weather,  even  without  frost  at 
night,  will  give  the  plants  a  check  from  which  they 
will  never  recover  sufficiently  to  produce  a  good  crop. 
While  melon  seeds  may  be  planted  in  the  middle  of 
Florida,  in  January  and  February,  March  15th  is  quite 
early  enough  for  the  first  planting  in  the  latitude  of 
Savannah,  and,  of  course,  later  further  North. 

CULTIVATION. 

If  the  first  sowing  has  failed,  or  the  plants  have  been 
killed  or  injured  by  cold,  it  is  best  to  await  the  growth 


234  TBUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

of  the  second  or  even  of  the  third  planting ;  otherwise, 
as  soon  as  the  first  has  made  two  rough  leaves,  and  the 
others  are  up,  the  top  of  the  hill  should  be  stirred  by  a 
hand-weeder,  or  other  hand  implement,  or  by  the  fingers  ; 
and  the  loose  soil  drawn  to  the  stems  up  to  the  seed- 
leaves,  at  the  same  time  thinning  the  plants  to  a  couple, 
of  each  sowing,  or  even  to  less,  if  they  crowd  each  other. 
Of  course,  the  strongest,  healthiest  looking  plants  are  to 
be  left.  It  is  sometimes  the  case  that  plants  from  the  sec- 
ond sowing  are  more  advanced  than  those  from  the  first, 
when  all  of  the  latter  should  be  removed.  To  stir  the 
soil  and  destroy  young  weeds,  the  cultivator  or  horse-hoe 
is  run  in  both  directions  over  the  whole  surface,  and  as 
near  the  hills  as  possible  without  disturbing  them.  They 
should  be  thinned  to  a  stand  early  enough  to  prevent 
crowding,  and  the  hills  hoed  about  the  time  the  plants 
commence  to  "  run,"  and  the  soil  drawn  well  up  to  the 
seed-leaves,  great  care  being  taken  not  to  cover  the  leaves 
or  crown.  Before  the  vines  reach  the  edge  of  the  hills, 
two  furrows  should  be  thrown  to  each  side  of  the  row. 
It  requires  careful  plowing  to  throw  the  soil  to  the  middle 
without  disturbing  the  hills,  which  are  only  six  feet  apart. 
This  is  done  by  depressing  the  right  handle  of  the  plow, 
or  pushing  it  inward  to  the  rows  as  the  plow  reaches 
each  hill,  and  erecting  it  again  in  passing.  Melon  vines 
should  never  be  handled,  if  it  can  possibly  be  avoided, 
and,  therefore,  as  the  vines  cover  the  bed,  and  before 
they  extend  beyond  it,  the  plow  is  used  repeatedly,  un- 
til the  plants  are  left  on  wide  beds  separated  by  a  wide 
furrow.  Before  the  second  plowing,  hoes  should  be  care- 
fully used  around  the  hills  and  between  the  vines  with- 
out touching  them  rudely ;  removing  all  weeds  before 
overlooked.  Watermelons  come  into  market  from  Florida 
about  the  latter  part  of  May;  and  from  the  vicinity 
of  Savannah  and  the  adjacent  Sea  Islands,  about  July 
1st. 


THE  WATERMELON.  235 

GATHERING  THE  FRUIT. 

An  experienced  picker  can  recognize  from  its  general 
light  and  bright,  but  not  glistening  appearance,  when  a 
melon  has  reached  a  proper  state  to  be  cut  from  the  vine 
for  shipment,  before  it  is  fully,  or  "  red  "  ripe,  and  he 
may  do  so  without  any  other  loss  of  time  than  is  required 
to  detach  it  from  the  vine  and  to  place  it  on  end  for  the 
carriers.  Roads  should  be  convenient,  for  it  is  impossi- 
ble to  induce  the  laborers  to  avoid  treading  on  the  vines, 
even  when  they  do  not  cover  the  ground.  The  less  ex- 
perienced pickers  must  look  for  other  signs  of  ripening, 
and  the  "belly,"  or  lower  surface,  where  it  has  been  in 
contact  with  the  earth,  presents  the  most  reliable  in  the 
appearance  of  the  pores  of  the  skin.  When  these  become 
perceptible  to  the  touch,  by  a  roughness  of  the  skin,  or 
can  be  seen,  or  the  rind  has  become  too  hard  to  be  read- 
ily indented  by  the  finger  nail,  the  melon  may  be  picked 
for  shipment. 

The  shriveling  or  dying  of  the  "  curl,"  or  little  ten- 
dril nearest  to  the  melon,  or  in  the  axil  of  the  stem,  is  a 
usual,  but  not  a  certain  rign  of  ripeness. 

A  ripe  melon  sounds  hollow  upon  percussion  with  the 
knuckle ;  but  thumping  is  only  practicable  in  the  early 
morning,  for  a  large  unripe  melon  has  the  same  reso- 
nance during  the  hot  midday  sun.  If  the  "belly"  is 
yellow  and  blistered  the  melon  is  surely  full  ripe.  Pres- 
sure upon  the  fruit  to  hear  the  sound  of  the  rupture  ot 
the  flesh  within,  if  ripe,  is  objectionable.  It  injures  the 
ripe  as  well  as  the  green,  and  should  never  be  resorted  to. 

INSECTS. 

It  is  possible,  nay,  even  probable,  that  the  late,  gen- 
erally observed  perishing  of  melon  vines  may  be  entirely 
attributable  to  insects,  and  in  part,  to  an  unknown  one. 
Wire-worms,  or  larvae  of  Diabroticce,  may  be  the  cause 
of  the  death  of  some. 


±RtTCIt-FAR^rlKG   AT  TftE   SOUTH. 

The  injury  to  the  seed-leaves  of  young  plants  by  flea- 
beetles  is  annoying,  but  never  extensive  enough  to  war- 
rant the  application  of  a  remedy  over  the  large  area  of  a 
melon  crop.  Of  the  several  plants  in  each  hill  a  vigorous 
one  may  be  expected  to  escape  injury,  until  the  develop- 
ment of  rough  leaves,  when  the  danger  from  this  source 
ceases. 

The  watermelon  is  a  food  plant  of  the  yellowish  green, 
nearly  translucent  larva  of  an  insect  very  similar  to  the 
pickle-worm  moth,  Phacellura  hyalinitalis.  If  this  in- 
sect has  two  broods,  the  first,  or  spring  brood,  must  be 
very  limited  in  numbers ;  for  I  have  never  known  the 
early  melon  crop  for  shipment  to  be  damaged,  while  later 
crops  suffer  very  severely.  Not  only  are  the  leaves  de- 
voured, but  the  worms  gnaw  and  penetrate  the  fruit.  It 
is,  of  course,  the  policy  of  the  farmer  to  destroy  the  in- 
sects in  all  its  stages,  whenever  possible  ;  but  no  remedy 
has  as  yet  been  found  that  can  be  profitably  applied.  The 
Phacellura  is  known  to  be  subject  to  two  parasitic  in- 
sects :  the  Pimpla  conquisitor,  and  a  Tachina  fly. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 


THE  STRAWBERRY  (Fragaria). 

Fraistor,  French  ;  Erdbeere,  German ;  Aardbezie,  Dutch  ;  Pianta  di  fragola, 
Italian  ;  and  Fresa,  Spanish. 

The  Strawberry,  with  the  majority  of  the  cultivated 
fruits  of  Northern  climates,  belongs  to  the  Rose  family. 
It  well  deserves  its  botanical  name,  Fragaria  (from  fra- 
gro,  to  emit  a  sweet  odor),  for  no  other  fruit  is  so  frag- 
rant. While  some  who  have  written  upon  the  straw- 


THE   STRAWBERRY.  237 

berry  make  nearly  a  dozen  species,  the  most  accurate 
botanists  fail  to  find  more  than  three  or  four,  that  are 
really  distinct.  The  most  widely  distributed  species  is 
Fragaria  vesca,  the  Wood  or  Alpine  strawberry.  In 
this  the  seeds  (really  one-seeded  seed-vessels)  are  not 
sunken  in  a  cavity  in  the  fruit,  but  are  prominent  upon 
the  surface.  This  is  the  most  widely  distributed  species, 
being  found  wild  in  Europe,  Asia,  and  in  this  country. 
From  this  are  derived  all  the  cultivated  Alpine  strawber- 
ries, so  popular  on  the  Continent  of  Europe,  and  so  sel- 
dom grown  in  this  country. 

F.  grandiflora,  the  Large-flowered  strawberry,  is  a 
native  of  South  America,  and  on  the  Pacific  coast  ex- 
tends northward  to  California.  The  Chilian  strawberry 
(F.  Chilensis)  is  now  regarded  as  a  form  of  this. 

F.  Virginiana,  the  Virginia  or  Scarlet  strawberry  is  our 
most  common  wild  strawberry.  It  is  found  from  the 
Arctic  circle  to  Florida,  and  extends  northward  to  Ore- 
gon and  Washington  Territory.  Occurring  in  a  great 
variety  of  localities,  several  of  its  forms  have  been 
described  as  species.  This  and  F.  grandi flora  are  the 
parents  of  the  strawberries  generally  cultivated.  They 
diifer  from  the  Alpine  species  in  having  their  seeds  in  a 
cavity  more  or  less  deep.  The  other  species  which  have 
been  described  as  distinct  are  of  no  importance  to  the 
cultivator. 

The  strawberry  was  apparently  known  to  the  Romans 
only  in  its  wild  state,  for  none  of  their  writers  have  men- 
tioned it  as  among  cultivated  fruits.  It  is  first  mentioned 
as  having  been  cultivated  in  England  during  the  reign  of 
Richard  III,  in  1483.  With  the  exception  of  a  variety 
of  Wood  strawberry  raised  in  France  about  1 660,  no  im- 
proved variety  of  the  strawberry  was  known  until  late  in 
the  last  century,  after  the  introduction  of  the  Large- 
flowered  and  the  Virginia  strawberries.  With  the  pro- 
duction of  improved  seedlings,  as  well  as  hybrids,  new 


238  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

varieties  increased  rapidly  both  in  this  country  and  in 
Europe,  varieties  of  the  former  species  seeming  to  be  bet- 
ter adapted  to  the  climate  of  Europe,  while  those  of  the 
latter  are  preferred  in  this  country. 

The  wild  berry  is  vastly  superior  to  most  of  the  new 
varieties,  which  the  mania  for  size,  regardless  of  the  more 
valuable  qualities  of  flavor,  and  aroma,  has  developed. 

All  the  wild  species  and  most  of  the  improved  varieties 
have  perfect  flowers.  They  contain  both  stamens  and 
pistils,  and  are  termed  hermaphrodite  flowers.  In  the 
strawberry,  the  numerous  pistils  are  crowded  upon  a 
rounded  body  in  the  centre  of  the  flower,  called  the  re- 
ceptacle. Immediately  around  these  are  the  numerous 
stamens.  As  soon  as  the  pistils  are  fertilized  by  the  pol- 
len from  the  stamens,  they  begin  to  grow,  and  the  lower 
part  of  each  one  ripens  into  a  diminutive,  bony,  one- 
seeded  nutlet,  which  popularly  passes  for  the  seed,  and 
it  is  convenient,  for  the  sake  of  brevity,  to  call  it  so.  As 
the  pistils  themselves,  after  fertilization,  begin  to  ripen, 
the  receptacle  on  which  they  are  placed  begins  to  grow, 
and  at  length  becomes  the  juicy,  fine  flavored  mass  with 
which  we  are  familiar  as  the  strawberry,  though  in  struc- 
ture it  is  not  the  fruit,  but  merely  an  appendage  to  the 
proper  fruits.  Unless  the  pistil  is  fructified  by  the  pollen 
of  the  same,  or  of  some  other  flower,  through  the  medium 
of  insects  or  of  the  wind,  it  must  remain  sterile,  or  fruit- 
less, or  "blind."  The  flowers  of  some  of  the  improved  va- 
rieties, particularly  those  originating  in  this  country,  are 
entirely  without  stamens,  or  have  them  imperfectly  devel- 
oped. Such  are  the  " pistillate"  varieties,  as  for  instance 
the  old  "Hovey's  Seedling,"  and  the  later  "Crescent." 
Having  no  stamens,  they  must  be  fertilized  by  pollen 
from  other  flowers  and  we  must  plant  at  least  one  row 
of  a  perfect  variety  to  each  ten  rows  of  the  pistillate 
kind,  for  that  to  become  fruitful.  There  are  many  dis- 
advantages connected  with  the  cultivation  of  these  pistil- 


THE   STKAWBEERY.  239 

late  varieties,  and  as  there  are  many  as  good,  or  better, 
with  perfect  flowers,  the  former  should  be  discarded. 

VARIETIES   AND   YIELD. 

A  variety  may  be  adapted  to  a  certain  soil  and  climate, 
and  be  totally  unsuited  under  different  conditions  not 
very  distant.  Of  the  many  varieties  that  are  fine  and 
popular  at  the  North,  few  succeed  under  the  continued 
heat  and  dry  ness  of  a  part  of  our  summer  season. 

The  principal  requirements  of  a  market  variety  for 
shipment  to  distant  points  are: 

First,  Its  adaptability  to  our  climate. — Second,  Pro- 
ductiveness.— Third,  Fair  size. — Fourth,  Sufficient  firm- 
ness to  enable  it  to  endure  the  rough  handling  and  delay 
of  transportation  without  injury,  so  that  it  may  arrive  in 
market  in  good  presentable  appearance  and  condition. 

The  old  "Wilson's  Albany,"  or  "Wilson,"  and  the 
"Neunan"  or  "Charleston"  meet  these  conditions  better 
than  any  others.  The  latter  is  a  more  attractive  and  better 
flavored  berry,  is  more  productive  of  runners,  and  is 
rapidly  superseding  the  "Wilson"  as  the  Southern 
market  variety. 

Where  all  the  conditions  for  its  successful  culture  are 
favorable,  the  strawberry  has  long  been,  in  the  vicinity  of 
large  cities,  the  gardener's  most  valuable  crop. 

As  long  ago  as  1850,  the  average  net  profit  of  a  Scotch 
acre  *  of  strawberries  in  the  vicinity  of  Edinburgh  was 
from  one  hundred  and  seventy-five  to  two  hundred  dol- 
lars, the  land  renting  at  from  twenty-five  to  seventy-five 
dollars  per  acre. 

The  heaviest  shipments  to  our  Northern  markets  are 
made  from  Norfolk,  Virginia,  where  probably  the  largest 
strawberry  farm  in  the  world  is  located,  one  cultivator 
having  two  hundred  and  fifty  acres  in  this  fruit.  Large 

*  The  Scotch  acre  contains  six  thousand  and  eighty-four  square  yards, 
and  is  about  one  and  a  quarter  acre  English. 


240  TRUCK-FARMIKG   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

shipments  are  also  made  from  Charleston,  S.  C.,  to  the 
Eastern  markets,  and  from  Mobile  to  those  of  the  West. 
In  1879,  seven  hundred  and  thirty-four  thousand  and 
ninety-three  quarts  were  shipped  from  Charleston.  Ex- 
tensive plantings  for  shipment  have  also  been  made  in 
Florida  and  South-western  Georgia,  one  farmer  having 
twenty  acres  near  Thomasville,  Thomas  County. 

Although  there  are  lands  to  be  had  in  the  vicinity  of  Sa- 
vannah, with  adequate  drainage,  and  so  admirably  adapted 
to  the  cultivation  of  strawberries,  that  the  best  fruit 
farms  in  the  country  could  be  established  in  this  locality, 
not  enough  are  grown  to  supply  the  local  demand,  and 
supplies  for  that  purpose  are  procured  from  Florida  and 
Charleston.  In  the  local  market  the  retail  price  ranged 
from  fifteen  cents  to  one  dollar  per  quart-basket  the  past 
season,  averaging  thirty  cents.  The  first  sales  were 
made  February  20th.  The  first  shipments  from  Florida, 
about  February  1st,  that  arrive  in  good  order  in  the 
Northern  market,  sometimes  bring  from  three  to  five 
dollars.  Larger  shipments  of  one  hundred  quarts  and 
upwards  generally  bring  about  two  dollars.  Heavier,  and 
later  shipments,  soon  reduce  the  price. 

From  Charleston,  the  first  shipments,  coming  late  in 
March,  bring  from  seventy-five  cents  to  one  dollar  per 
quart,  but  the  price  drops,  as  the  quantity  increases,  to 
from  thirty-five  to  fifty  cents  per  quart. 

The  first  from  North  Carolina  bring  about  the  same 
price  as  Charleston  berries.  The  immense  quantities 
shipped  from  Norfolk,  commencing  about  May  10th, 
notwithstanding  the  fresher  state  of  the  fruit,  bring  the 
price  down  to  from  twenty-five  to  thirty-five  cents,  and 
sometimes  lower  still. 

New  York  is  the  best  market  for  strawberries.  No 
fancy  prices  are  realized  in  Baltimore. 

Occasionally  we  enjoy  in  the  latitudes  of  Savannah  and 
Mobile  a  sufficiently  protracted  period  of  warm  weather 


THE   STRAWBERRY.  241 

in  winter  for  the  plants  to  bloom  and  mature  fruit,  en- 
abling us  to  make  several  pickings  in  December,  but  this 
occurs  very  rarely. 

G.  H.  Baker,  of  Illinois,  reported  having  raised  two 
hundred  and  fifty-three  bushels,  or  eight  thousand  and 
ninety-six  quarts  of  "  Wilson's  Albany,"  upon  an  acre, 
giving  him  a  clear  profit  of  fifteen  hundred  and  nine 
dollars.  Mr.  Parker,  of  Massachusetts,  picked  three 
thousand  two  hundred  quarts  of  the  same  variety  from 
an  acre  within  ten  days,  and  sold  them  on  his  premises 
for  eleven  hundred  and  twenty  dollars.  The  well-known 
authority  on  the  strawberry — Rev.  E.  P.  Roe,  of  Orange 
County,  N.  Y.,  in  his  work  "  Success  with  Small  Fruits," 
mentions  the  yield  of  one  of  his  beds  of  the  "  Crescent 
Seedling,"  at  the  rate  of  three  hundred  and  forty-six 
bushels,  or  eleven  thousand  and  seventy-two  quarts  to  the 
acre.  A  few  years  ago,  0.  B.  Galusha  reported,  in  an 
Illinois  journal,  that  he  had  produced  fourteen  thousand 
quarts  of  the  same  variety  to  the  acre.  These  exceptional 
crops  are  merely  given  to  show  the  capabilities  of  the 
strawberry  under  favorable  contingencies.  No  such  ex- 
traordinary yields  can  be  realized  in  any  other  than  a  cool 
and  moist  climate,  and  it  is  doubtful  whether  in  our  hot 
region,  under  the  most  favorable  conditions  of  soil,  vari- 
ety, manure,  careful  preparation  and  proper  cultivation, 
without  subdrainage  and  irrigation,  more  than  six  thou- 
sand quarts  per  acre  can  be  produced,  while  three  thou- 
sand may  be  considered  a  good  yield,  and  from  fifteen 
hundred  to  two  thousand  are  common.  One  farmer, 
near  Savannah  picked  eight  hundred  and  ninety-four 
quarts  from  two-thirds  of  an  acre  and  discontinued 
picking  after  the  price  fell  below  fifteen  cents. 

SOIL  AXD   ITS   PREPARATION". 

The  selection  of  soil  and  location  should  be  made  with 
a  view  to  provide  the  moisture  so  absolutely  indispensa- 
U 


212  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

ble  for  successful  strawberry  culture.  The  plant  is  very 
deep-rooted,  its  roots  having  been  traced  to  a  depth  of 
four  feet.  Surface  watering  by  hand  is  impracticable, 
and  of  no  avail,  nor  are  low  lying  situations,  unless  sus- 
ceptible of  deep  drainage,  advisable. 

A  well-drained,  deeply  stirred,  friable,  more  or  less 
loamy  or  clayey  soil,  with  plenty  of  vegetable  matter,  will 
be  more  retentive  of  moisture  and  more  suitable  than  any 
other.  If  there  be  a  choice  of  location,  a  northern  open 
exposure  is  to  be  preferred. 

A  light,  sandy  soil,  although  it  will  mature  the  earliest 
fruit,  will  produce  smaller  berries,  the  picking  season 
will  be  much  shorter,  and  the  entire  crop  is  apt  to  be 
killed  out  during  the  first  summer.  This  summer  kill- 
ing is  the  chief  drawback  to  strawberry  culture  at  the 
South. 

If  stable  manure  is  to  be  used,  the  lighter  the  land,  the 
more  necessity  that  the  manure  should  be  thoroughly 
rotted,  lest  the  plants  grow  to  vine  at  the  expense  of  the 
fruit.  This  is  more  likely  to  occur  at  the  South  than  in 
a  cooler  climate,  and  heavier  applications  of  manure  are 
therefore  more  practicable  at  the  North. 

While  large  quantities  of  strong  animal  manures  are 
not  necessary  on  already  fertile  clay  soils,  they  cannot 
contain  too  much  decaying  vegetable  matter.  If  the  soil 
be  of  proper  character,  a  field  which  has  been  planted  for 
several  seasons  in  vegetables,  and  upon  which  no  weeds  and 
grass  have  been  permitted  to  go  to  seed,  would  give  the 
best  chances  for  success.  Such  land,  after  having  ma- 
tured a  well-manured  cabbage  crop,  would  need  no  other, 
and  no  better  fertilization,  than  a  crop  of  cow  peas  sown 
after  the  removal  of  the  cabbages  in  May,  and  turned 
under  a  few  weeks  before  the  setting  of  the  strawberry 
plants.  In  such  case  the  land  should  be  deeply  cross- 
plowed,  a  subsoil  following  the  turning  plow,  a  deep  soil 
being  as  necessary  as  a  fertile  one.  If  manure  is  to  be 


THE   STKAWBERBY.  243 

applied,  it  must  be  broadcast,  after  the  first  plowing  and 
harrowing,  and  then  be  turned  under  at  the  cross  plow- 
ing. Each  plowing  should  be  followed  by  the  use  of  the 
subsoil  plow,  and  afterwards  by  the  harrow.  It  is  a  mis- 
taken idea  that  the  roots  of  the  previous  season  are  either 
dead  or  have  no  functions  to  perform,  for  it  is  in  them 
mainly  that  the  leaves  have  stored  up  matter  for  the  fu- 
ture use  of  the  plant.  In  the  preparation  of  the  soil  it 
should,  therefore,  be  borne  in  mind  that  it  is  to  serve  for 
several  years,  and  that  no  subsequent  deep  stirring  dur- 
ing the  after  cultivation  of  the  crop  is  practicable. 

Composts  of  muck,  or  leaf-mould,  with  stable,  cow,  or 
artificial  manures  are  useful.  Potash  has  been  found 
especially  beneficial  to  the  crop.  Cotton  seed  is  also 
good. 

METHODS   OF   PLANTING. 

Strawberries  may  be  grown  by  either  one  of  the  three 
methods  of : 

First,  The  single  hill.  Second,  The  continuous  single 
row.  Third  The  matted  bed. 

Each  has  its  advantages,  but  the  former  is  more  suita- 
ble to  this  climate,  as  it  renders  clean  culture  less  trou- 
blesome and  expensive,  and,  although  the  crop  may  not 
be  as  abundant,  finer  and  larger  fruit  is  produced.  It 
is,  therefore,  the  only  method  suited  to  the  cultivation 
of  the  larger  varieties,  such  as  the  "Sharpless,"  the 
"Bidwell,"  and  others  like  them. 

The  field,  having  been  plowed  in  narrow  lands,  thirty 
V>  forty  feet  wide,  and  finely  prepared  by  cross  harrow- 
ing, is  laid  off  in  straight  rows  three  to  three  and  a  half 
feet  apart.  This  may  be  done  by  the  garden  line,  or 
more  expeditiously  by  means  of  a  wheel  upon  the  tire  of 
which  are  fixed  knobs  or  projections  at  certain  regular 
distances.  The  impression  of  tbe  tire  upon  the  soft 
soil  marks  the  lines,  while  those  of  the  knobs  indicate 


244  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

the  spots  for  the  insertion  of  the  plants.  The  wheel  is 
fixed  between  handles  like  that  of  a  seed-drill,  and  has 
an  upright  stick  in  front,  which  is  lined  to  a  set  of 
poles  like  those  used  for  laying  off  trenches  with  the 
plow.  The  plants  are  put  out  from  twelve  to  eighteen 
inches  apart  in  the  row,  and  the  knobs  and  wheel  are 
arranged  accordingly. 

The  planting  for  the  continuous  row  is  the  same.  The 
difference  between  the  two  results  from  subsequent  cul- 
ture. The  advantages  of  this  method,  compared  with 
the  matted  bed  are,  that  the  berries  will  be  larger,  the 
cultivation  may  be  partly  with  the  cultivator,  and  there 
will  be  less  cutting  of  vines  to  be  done. 

If  the  matted-bed  system  is  contemplated,  slightly  ele- 
vated beds  four  feet  wide,  with  intervening  paths  eight- 
teen  inches  wide,  which  act  as  auxiliary  drains,  are 
thrown  up  by  the  plow.  On  these,  after  they  have  been 
raked  off,  three  rows  are  put  out,  eighteen  inches  apart, 
one  running  down  the  centre  of  the  bed,  the  plants 
twelve  to  eighteen  inches  from  each  other.  The  advan- 
tages that  may  be  claimed  for  this  method  are,  the 
greater  number  of  bearing  plants;  the  fact  that  after 
the  first  year  few  or  no  runners  will  be  produced  on  the 
top  of  the  bed;  that  the  close  growth  tends  to  keep 
down  weeds,  and  that  the  soil  will  not  be  compacted,  and 
its  porosity  destroyed  by  the  trampling  of  the  pickers, 
who  gather  the  fruit. 

SETTING   OUT  THE   PLANTS. 

Strong,  well-rooted  plants  of  the  same  season's 
growth,  only,  should  be  used  for  setting  out.  Long 
straggling  roots  may  be  shortened  to  suit  the  general 
length  and  that  of  the  dibble  or  trowel.  The  latter  is 
to  be  preferred  for  planting,  as  the  roots  will  be  spread 
out,  instead  of  being  crowded  together  in  the  narrow 
hole  of  the  dibble.  If  the  plants  have  been  procured 


THE  STKAWBEHRY.  245 

from  a  distance,  it  may  be  advisable  to  trim  away  dead 
leaves  and  puddle  the  roots.  If  they  can  be  taken  freshly 
from  a  field  near  by,  neither  will  be  necessary.  When 
set  out  the  upper  portions  of  the  roots  should  neither 
show  above  the  soil  nor  should  the  crown  be  buried,  but 
be  inserted  to  the  level  of  the  general  surface. 

The  weather  being  favorable,  the  earlier  that  strong 
well-rooted  plants  can  be  had  and  be  set  out,  the  better 
will  be  the  growth  during  the  fall  and  winter,  and,  there- 
fore, the  earlier  and  more  abundant  will  be  the  first  crop. 
This  planting  may  sometimes  be  done  as  early  as  the 
first  of  August.  It  is  impossible  to  procure  plants  from 
Northern  nurseries  early  enough,  which  is  another  reason 
for  preferring  those  of  home  growth.  If  such  have  been 
potted  and  put  out  in  July,  a  still  better  first  crop  may 
be  realized.  As  there  will  be  no  disturbance  of  the  roots 
in  transferring  the  plants  from  the  pots  to  the  open 
ground,  it  may  be  done  regardless  of  dry  weather,  should 
such  prevail  at  the  time.  Two  and  a  half  or  three-inch 
flower  pots,  filled  with  soil,  are  plunged  in  the  beds  up  to 
the  rim,  wherever  young  plants  upon  the  runner  are 
about  to  root,  and  these  are  kept  in  place  by  placing  upon 
the  runner  a  pebble,  an  oyster  shell,  or  other  weight. 

Late  in  September  and  October  is,  however,  the  safest 
season  for  putting  out  unpotted  strawberry  plants  in  this 
latitude ;  but  it  may  be  done  through  the  whole  winter 
and  during  early  spring. 

Clean  culture  is  of  paramount  importance.  Unless  a 
farmer  be  resolved  to  accomplish  this,  he  had  better  not 
attempt  a  strawberry  crop  in  our  weed  and  grass-growing 
climate.  Its  prospective  value,  its  duration,  and  the 
cost  of  preparation  are  too  great  to  abandon  the  planta- 
tion to  grass  and  weeds,  after  the  first  picking  season  is 
over.  The  cost  of  planting  is  so  great,  and  when  well 
cared  for  the  crop  is  so  much  more  productive  the  second 
year  than  the  first,  that  the  practice  of  treating  it  like 


246  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

an  annual  crop  cannot  be  too  strongly  condemned.  It 
is  often  the  case  that  this  practice  is  adopted  by  some, 
from  ignorance,  or  want  of  industry,  and  by  others,  from 
want  of  time  or  from  negligence,  during  the  season  of 
shipping  other  produce.  If,  however,  during  the  picking 
season,  a  warm,  wet  spell  should  prevail,  the  task  of  sub- 
duing the  weeds  is  not  easy  of  accomplishment.  Hon.  0. 
0.  Langdon,  of  Alabama,  a  good  authority  on  strawberry 
culture  at  the  South,  reported  a  serious  case  of  the  kind 
in  1868,  when  it  required  the  work  of  nine  men  during 
six  days  to  clean  five-eighths  of  an  acre.  The  plants, 
"  Wilson's  Albany,"  had  been  set  out  in  March,  1864,  in 
rows  of  single  hills,  four  feet  apart,  the  plants  being 
eighteen  inches  from  each  other. 

During  the  whole  life  of  a  plantation  on  the  single 
hill  system,  the  cultivator,  running  shallow,  may  keep 
the  surface  clean  and  mellow,  when  not  mulched,  to 
within  an  inch  or  two  of  the  plants,  and  the  hoe,  with 
hand-weeding,  must  be  relied  upon  between  the  plants. 
A  variety,  otherwise  suitable,  like  the  "Wilson's  Al- 
bany," that  makes  few  runners,  is  best  adapted  to  this 
method,  and  the  runners  must  be  scrupulously  removed 
by  a  hoe  or  knife."  The  plants,  instead  of  exhausting 
their  nutriment  in  the  production  of  runners,  will  store 
up  a  greater  amount  for  the  next  crop  of  fruit,  and  the 
stools  will  enlarge  until  the  leaves  of  adjacent  plants 
nearly  touch  each  other  in  the  rows.  When  the  continu- 
ous row  is  contemplated,  the  cultivation  is  the  same  dur- 
ing the  first  season  as  above  described,  but  after  the  run- 
ners begin  to  grow,  all  those  projecting  out  from  the 
line  of  rows  are  to  be  cut  away,  allowing  only  such  to 
take  root  as  extend  along  the  line  of  plants.  By  this 
method  a  continuous  narrow  bed,  ten  inches  or  a  foot 
wide,  becomes  established.  During  the  third  and  fourth 
seasons  all  new  runners  must  be  removed.  The  cultiva- 
tion of  the  matted-bed  crop*  is  exclusively  by  the  hoe, 


THE  STRAWBEEET.  247 

except  in  the  intervening  paths,  where  the  plow  may  be 
used.  During  the  second  season  there  should  be  no  room 
for  the  hoe,  and  the  work  should  be  confined  to  hand- 
weeding,  when  necessary.  The  soil,  in  all  three  meth- 
ods, should  be  kept  mellow  and  clean  until  just  before 
budding  or  blooming  commences,  in  order  to  destroy  as 
many  of  the  germs  of  weeds  as  possible. 

MULCHING. 

Immediately  after  the  last  working,  a  mulch  should 
be  applied  around  the  plants  and  over  the  entire  inter- 
vening surface.  This  is  done  especially  to  prevent  the 
fruit  from  becoming  splashed  with  soil  by  rains.  The 
other  benefits  of  the  mulch,  already  mentioned  in  a 
former  chapter,  will  follow  incidentally.  If  possible, 
the  mulch  should  be  thick  enough  to  prevent  the  growth 
of  grass. 

Of  our  available  materials  for  mulching,  pine  straw 
is  the  best,  either  whole  or  cut,  as  insects  are  less  apt  to 
harbor  under  it.  Sawdust  is  objectionable  because  the 
finer  particles  will  adhere  to  the  fruit,  and  when  rice 
chaff  is  used,  small  graminivorous  birds  are  apt  to  scratch 
away  berries,  as  well  as  a  part  of  the  mulch,  in  search  for 
pieces  of  the  grain.  As  soon  as  the  fruiting  season  is 
over,  the  mulch  must  be  removed  and  the  crop  cleaned 
and  cultivated  at  whatever  cost  of  labor.  It  is  right  here 
that  the  fatal  neglect  generally  occurs. 

The  matted  bed  requires  no  mulch  the  second  season, 
nor  should  there  be  any  room  for  it.  The  closely  grow- 
ing plants  will  protect  the  fruit  from  being  soiled. 
Owing  to  the  crowded  condition  of  the  plants,  the  earlier 
will  be  the  exhaustion  of  the  soil,  and  the  greater  the 
impossibility  of  stirring  the  compacted  surface.  Hence 
the  bearing  of  the  matted  bed  becomes  so  poor  that  it  is 
generally  advisable  to  plow  it  up  after  the  second  season, 
and  to  use  the  land  for  some  other  crop.  Plantings, 


248  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

after  the  other  two  methods,  are  most  productive  the  sec- 
ond season,  but  remain  remunerative  two  seasons  more. 
After  the  fourth  year,  the  land  should  be  used  for  some 
other  crop.  New  beds  should  be  set  out  every  year  to 
replace  those  going  out  of  use.  Top-dressings  of  ashes, 
bone  meal  and  muck,  or  some  other  fine  compost,  the 
best  ingredients  of  which  are  susceptible  of  being 
leached  out  and  carried  into  the  soil  by  rains,  should  bo 
made  prior  to  putting  on  the  rnulch.  These  should  be 
applied  each  successive  season. 

PICKING   AND   MARKETING. 

The  season  for  ripening,  or  for  shipping  varies  more 
than  with  any  other  crop  of  the  truck-farmer.  A  period 
of  freezing  late  in  the  season  will  destroy  any  expanded 
blossoms,  or  young  fruit  already  formed,  and  retard  the 
first  picking.  If  there  be  no  black  or  heavy  hoar  frost 
with  a  low  degree  of  temperature  in  January  or  later, 
the  crop  will  come  in  early  in  March.  If  the  roots  could 
be  kept  moist  by  irrigation  the  fruiting  season  might  be 
considerably  prolonged. 

Strawberries  as  far  south  as  Charleston  and  Savannah 
should  not  be  fully  ripe  when  picked  for  shipment.  They 
should  not  be  pulled  from  the  vines  and  bruised,  but  the 
stems  should  be  pinched  oif,  leaving  a  part  attached  to 
each  berry.  The  least  handling,  and  that  little,  carefully 
done,  will  tend  to  insure  good  quality  and  satisfactory 
prices.  The  picking  must  be  done  directly  into  the 
quart  baskets  in  which  the  berries  are  to  be  shipped. 
The  stems  and  "  hulls  "  (the  calyxes),  will  admit  air  be- 
tween the  berries  and  prevent  bruising.  These  baskets 
are  packed  in  separate  tiers,  in  well-ventilated,  locked 
crates,  each  holding  thirty-two  baskets. 

It  is  thought  that  when  the  buyer  sees  fine  berries  in 
the  top  layer  he  infers  there  is  a  good  quality  throughout 
the  crate,  for  which  reason  the  best  baskets  are  fre- 


THE   STKAWBERKY. 


249 


quently  reserved  for  "toppers."  This  practice  should  be 
utterly  condemned  in  the  case  of  this  fruit  as  well  as  in 
all  shipments  of  vegetables. 


INSECTS. 


Wherever  the  common  field  crickets  abound,  they  be- 
come very  destructive,  injuring  many  of  the   ripening 
See  chapter  on  "Insects."     Other  in- 


fruits  at  night. 


Fig.   66.— STRAWBERRY 

LEAF- ROLLER  (Anchylopera 
fragarice). 

a,  Larva,  of  real  size ;  6,  Moth, 
enlarged. 


Fig.  67.— STRAW- 
BERRY CROWN- 
BORER. 


sects  particularly  infesting  the  strawberry  plant  at  tho 
South  are  : 

1.  Anchylopera  fragarice — (The  Strawberry  leaf -roller). 

2.  Emphytus  maculatus — (Strawberry-worm). 

3.  Analcis  fragarice — (Strawberry  crown-borer). 

4.  Colaspis  flavida — (Strawberry  leaf -beetle). 

5.  Corimelcena  pulicaria — (Flea-like  Negro-bug). 
The  half-inch  long  worm  of   the  moth  Anchylopera 

fragarice  (fig.  66)  lies  hidden  in  the  curled-up  leaf,  upon 
which  it  feeds.  In  consequence  of  this  habit,  any  effi- 
caceous  application  of  an  insecticide  is  of  doubtful  use. 
The  second  brood  passes  the  winter  in  the  ground  in  the 
pupa  state.  Either  of  the  remedies  that  have  been 
recommended  for  destroying  the  larvae,  by  burning  off  the 
dead  leaves,  or  by  passing  a  heavy  roller  over  the  plants 
would  be  more  destructive  to  the  crop  than  any  injuries 
the  insects  might  possibly  inflict. 


250 


TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 


The  Strawberry-worm  (fig.  68)  sometimes  injures  the 
leaves  considerably.  The  larva  is  about  half  an  inch 
long,  of  yellowish  green  color,  It  feeds  generally  in  a 


Fig.  68. — STRAWBERRY 

WORM  (JSmpfiytus 
maculatus). 


Fig.  69.— PLY  OP   STRAWBERRY 
WORM. 


curled-up  position  on  the  leaf.     It  winters  in  the  ground 
as  a  chrysalid.     Its  perfect  state  is  a  fly  (fig.  69). 

The  snout-beetle  (Analcis  fragariw,  fig.  67)  lays  its 
eggs  in  the  crown  of  the  plant,  where  the  young  larvae 
damage  the  leaves  and  fruit  stalks.  Colaspisflavida  (figs. 
70,  71)  is  an  insect  not  distantly  related  to  the  Colorado 


Fig.  70. 

STRAWBERRY 

LEAP-BEETLE. 

Larva. 


Fig.  71. 

STRAWBERRY    LEAP' 

BEETLE. 
1,  enlarged;  2,  real  size. 


potato-beetle.     Lime,  first  slaked  and  sifted,  dusted  on 
the  leaves  while  yet  wet  with  dew  is  said  to  drive  away 


MUSKMELOtf,    OE  CANTALOUPE.  251 

the  worms  of  Emphytus  maculatus.  Pyrethrum  powder 
may  be  applied  at  any  time,  but  Paris  green  may  only 
be  used  after  the  bearing  season  has  passed,  in  case  any 
of  these  insects  become  very  destructive.  . 


CHAPTER     XXXI. 

MUSKMELON,  OR  CANTALOUPE  (Cucumii  Mdo\ 

Melon,  French ;  Mclone,  German  ;   Meleon,  Dutch ;  Mellone,  Italian,  ana 
Melon,  Spanish. 

The  Muskmelon  came  to  England  originally  from 
Jamaica,  but  its  native  country  is  not  satisfactorily 
known.  South  of  Norfolk  it  is  a  very  uncertain  crop, 
owing  to  the  necessity  for  picking  it  very  green  ;  at  Sav- 
annah, so  soon  as  the  skin  commences  to  become  rough, 
and  before  any  change  of  color  takes  place.  Even  then, 
shipments  often  reach  their  destination  overripe,  and 
shrinkages  are  reported.  Further  south  than  Savannah, 
the  fruit  would,  of  course,  have  to  be  picked  still  greener 
and  more  immature,  and  would  therefore  ripen  with  lit- 
tle of  the  fine  flavor  of  naturally  ripened  fruit. 

VARIETIES. 

The  smaller  kinds,  like  the  "  Jenny  Lind,"  are  most 
salable.  The  "Green  Citron,"  although  larger,  is  also  a 
popular  variety.  The  "  Banana  Citron,"  in  small  con- 
sign ments,  sold  fairly  in  northern  markets  during  the 
season  of  1886. 


252  TBUCK-FARMING   AT  THE  SOUTH. 

SOIL. 

Although  the  Muskmelon  will  succeed  on  lower  land 
than  the  Watermelon,  the  fruit  will  carry  better  and  be 
of  better  quality  when  grown  on  dry,  sandy  soil.  The 
cultivation  is  identical  with  that  of  the  Watermelon. 
The  usual  distance  of  planting  the  hills  is  from  five  to 
six  feet  each  way.  Prof.  J.  S.  Newman,  of  the  Alabama 
Department  of  Agriculture,  plants  on  ridges  four  feet 
from  each  other,  the  plants  being  eight  inches  apart.  He 
picked  13,000  melons  from  an  acre  in  forty-six  days. 

PACKING. 

The  smaller  varieties  may  be  shipped  in  half-barrel 
crates,  the  larger  in  barrels  or  barrel  crates.  Owing  to 
the  length  of  the  fruit — sometimes  upward  of  two  feet — 
the  "Banana  Citron"  requires  barrels.  To  prevent  bruis- 
ing and  rotting  at  the  ends,  they  must  be  protected  with 
moss  or  some  similar  material. 

The  Muskmelon  is  subject  to  the  attacks  of  the  same 
insects  as  the  Watermelon. 


OKBA   OB   GUMBO.  253 

CHAPTER    XXXII. 
OKRA  OB  GUMBO  (Hibiscus  esculentus). 

This  vegetable  has  heen  regarded  as  a  native  of  the 
West  Indies,  but  the  recent  researches  of  DeCandolle 
(L'Origine  des  Plantes  Cultivees,  Paris,  1883),  show  that 
it  is  undoubtedly  of  African  origin.  Okra  has  long  been 
very  popular  at  the  South,  but  is  only  gradually  becom- 
ing sufficiently  so  at  the  North  to  warrant  shipments. 
At  present  the  market  would  be  overstocked  by  any  large 
consignments.  The  part  used  is  the  unripe  tender  seed 
pods, which  abound  in  mucilage,  and  are  used  for  thicken- 
ing soups  and  stews,  and  is  also  boiled  and  dressed  with 
butter,  like  Asparagus.  It  is  regarded  to  be  highly 
nutritious. 

VABIETIES. 

In  consequence  of  the  greater  convenience  in  cutting 
or  breaking  the  pods  of  the  taller  growing  kinds,  these 
are  to  be  preferred  to  the  dwarf  varieties.  The  long, 
round  Ladyfinger  is  better  than  any  of  the  short,  fluted 
sorts.  Young  Okra  plants  being  quite  tender,  the  seed 
should  not  be  sown  before  March  1st. 

• 

SOIL. 

All  the  wild  species  of  Hibiscus  are  generally  found  on 
low  ground,  and  the  Okra  delights  in  a  moist  loam  or 
mould,  growing  to  a  height  of  ten  or  twelve  feet  on  rice- 
field  banks.  The  crop  matures  earlier  and  is  better  in 
quality,  however,  on  a  lighter  and  dryer  soil.  It  is  sown 


254  TRUCK-FARMING   AT  THE   SOUTH. 

on  ridges  from  three  to  four  feet  apart,  with  the  plants 
at  a  distance  of  two  feet  apart.  It  is  difficult  to  trans- 
plant it,  as  it  has  but  few  fibrous  roots,  and  a  liberal  use 
of  seed  is  advisable.  Its  cultivation  is  like  that  of  cot- 
ton, it  being  of  the  same  family. 

PICKING   AND   PACKING. 

The  pods  should  be  picked,  or  cut,  when  still  tender 
enough  to  be  broken  from  the  stalk.  If  the  point  of  the 
pod  will  not  break  upon  being  bent,  it  is  already  too 
tough  for  the  table.  The  pods  are  to  be  carefully  packed 
in  either  bushel  crates  or  smaller  ones,  and  are  sold  by 
the  count.  The  plant  is  virtually  free  from  insect  depre- 
dations. 


CONCLUSION.  355 

CONCLUSION. 

Some  of  the  truck-farmers  near  the  large  cities,  prin- 
cipally those  planting  on  a  smaller  scale,  grow  a  general 
assortment  of  vegetables  and  attend  the  local  markets. 

Owing,  however,  to  the  numerous  "patches"  in  the 
vicinity,  and  the  competitions  they  cause,  this  attend- 
ance has  of  late  years  been  unsatisfactory.  Nearly  all 
the  farmers  grow  Ruta  Baga  or  Swedish  Turnips  in  the 
fall  for  sale  to  the  retail  grocers  in  the  winter,  the  price 
being  twenty-five  cents  for  eight  bunches. 

Another  source  of  income  is  the  hay  crop.  The  heav 
ily  manured  fields  produce  a  thick  growth  of  C^ab-grass, 
which  may  be  mowed  several  times  during  the  season, 
making  good  hay  when  cut  at  the  proper  time.  Unfor- 
tunately for  the  reputation  of  this  product,  many  farm- 
ers defer  cutting  the  grass  until  it  is  too  old  to  make  hay 
of  the  best  quality.  The  price  is  fifteen  dollars  per  ton. 
The  crop  of  one  of  the  farmers  in  this  vicinity  in  1882 
was  valued  at  two  thousand  dollars. 

Apart  from  the  neighborhood  of  cities  truck-farming  is 
generally  an  adjunct  to  cotton  planting.  In  Florida,  it 
is  an  adjunct  to  orange  growing.  In  southwestern 
Georgia,  along  the  line  of  the  Savannah,  Florida,  and 
Western  Railroad,  in  parts  of  Florida  and  at  other  ex- 
treme southern  points,  the  fields,  after  having  yielded 
early  vegetables  for  shipment,  sometimes  produce  the 
most  satisfactory  portions  of  the  cotton  crop,  owing  to 
the  previous  manuring  and  careful  working  of  the  land. 


256  TRUCK-F ARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH 


APPENDIX. 


ANALYSES  AND  VALUES   OF  FERTILIZERS. 

The  truck-farmer  is  forced  to  use  to  a  greater  or  less 
extent  some  kind  of  artificial  fertilizer.  The  following 
circular,  issued  by  the  Department  of  Agriculture  of  the 
State  of  Georgia,  contains  information  of  value  to  all  who 
purchase  and  use  fertilizers.  The  circular  as  issued  by 
the  Department  contains  a  column  giving  the  names  of 
the  persons  for  whom  the  inspection  was  made.  As  this 
information  has  no  permanent  value,  it  is  omitted  for 
the  purpose  of  saving  space.  Some  other  unimportant 
omissions  have  been  made  in  reproducing  the  circular. 

ANALYSES    AND    COMMERCIAL    VALUES     OF    COMMERCIAL 
FERTILIZERS    AND   CHEMICALS, 

Inspected,  Analyzed  and  Admitted  to  Sale  in  Georgia  to 
January  10,  Season  of  1882-3. 

DEPARTMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE, 

ATLANTA,  GA.,  January  20th,  1883. 

EXPLANATIONS   OF  1HE  TABLES    OF  ANALYSES. 

The  tables  commencing  on  page  254  show  the  analyses 
and  calculated  relative  commercial  values  of  all  fertilizers 
and  chemicals  inspected,  analyzed  and  admitted  to  sale, 
to  January  10th,  1883. 

In  addition  to  the  chemical  determinations  and  com- 
mercial values,  a  column  has  been  added  which  shows 
the  numbers  of  tons  represented  by  the  samples  whose 


APPENDIX.  257 

analyses  are  given.     This  information  may  sometimes  be 
important  to  farmers  and  other  purchasers. 

RELATIVE   COMMERCIAL  VALUES. 

After  very  extended  correspondence  and  careful  con- 
sideration, it  has  been  thought  proper  to  reduce  the 
valuations  of  ammonia  and  phosphoric  acid  from  those 
of  last  season.  The  following  prices  per  pound  of  the 
valuable  ingredients  or  elements  of  plant  food  found  in 
the  fertilizers  by  analysis,  have  been  adopted  as  a  prac- 
tical approximation  to  their  true  value  at  Savannah,  viz: 

Available  Phosphoric  Acid.  10  cents  per  pound. 

Ammonia 20  cents  per  pound. 

Potash 6  cents  per  pound. 

Last  season  the  valuations  were: 

Available  Phosphoric  Acid 12i  cents  per  pound. 

Ammonia 25   cents  per  pound. 

Potash 6   cents  per  pound. 

It  is  often  desirable  to  know  the  relative  amounts  paid 
by  a  farmer  for  the  several  valuable  ingredients  in  a  ton 
of  fertilizers.  The  following  is  a  simple  rule:  Multiply 
the  per  centage  of  ammonia,  as  given  in  the  tables,  by 
$4.00,  the  available  phosphoric  acid  by  $2.00  and  the 
potash  by  $1.2,  or  $1.1-5,  and  the  respective  results  will 
show  the  value  of  each  ingredient  in  a  ton.  Thus :  Sup- 
pose a  fertilizer  analyzes  as  follows: 

Available  Phosphoric  Acid 9.27  per  cent. 

Ammonia 2.15  per  cent. 

Potash 1.85  per  cent. 

Then  : 

9.27  multiplied  by  2 $18.54 

2.15         "          "  4 8.60 

1.85         "          "1.2 2.23 

Tota1. ;,,.,,  $29,36 


258 


TRUCK-FAKMIXG   AT  THE   SOUTH. 


L-3WS  =  5~    :0^M^o:ct5«   . 

;B.Sr^*S^M5'8*6*orS 
•  Sofcg'gogc^'g'StcS* 

2lv-l-iagsag4*|5«3 


S-i*  a«  o  2  aZZ^^1  i  B«  » 


<3  §53-  3|  tf  |  |S  Ife  6 


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Si  S|4S°-82  :i|leSS§l*g»a 

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sMfi&Cai  .ffil^MlgjiE 

iPilfiliglf^si^^li 

,^  ^_    Q-cn  i-iO^CT-hOmESJ-  _r->S 


APPENDIX. 


259 


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01  a.  o.  o    samples    ana 
lyzed 


260 


TRUCK-FAKMLNG   AT  THE   SOUTH. 


WHOM  AND  WHERE  MANUFAC- 
TURED. 


mm  nq  pz/uw 

9J,d9J,  ifUOf  JO  'Oft 


-U9UIVJOO    9atfVt9tf 


izer  &  Chem.  Co.,  N. 
Evans.  Chicago,  HI. 


mported. 
m  ported. 
mported. 
mported. 
mported. 
mported. 
tern's  Ferti 

hompso 


v>m  \  : 


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APPENDIX.  261 

ECONOMY  IN  FERTILIZATION. 

Ever  since  the  Department  of  Agriculture  of  Georgia 
was  organized,  an  effort  has  been  made,  through  its  pub- 
lished reports,  to  impress  upon  the  farmers  of  the  State 
the  importance  of  adopting  some  cheap  means  of  increas- 
ing the  yield  of  their  crops  and  at  the  same  time  increase 
the  fertility  of  the  soil.  The  value  of  pea  vines  as  an 
improver  of  the  soil  has  been  repeatedly  urged  upon  the 
attention  of  the  farmers,  while  the  superiority  of  compost 
over  high-priced  commercial  manure  has  been  shown  by 
repeated  experiments  conducted  under  the  auspices  of 
the  Department  during  the  last  seven  years.  Formulse 
and  directions  for  composting  home  manures  with  super- 
phosphate and  kainit  have  been  published  in  the  reports 
of  the  Department  from  time  to  time,  and  results  of  ex- 
periments with  the  composts  made  according  to  these 
formulae  published  annually  since  1875.  These  results 
show  very  conclusively  the  great  economy  in  the  use  of 
the  compost,  since  at  one  half  the  cost  per  acre  of  the 
commercial  fertilizers,  as  good  yields  have  been  uniformly 
obtained. 

It  has  generally  been  admitted  that  when  an  experi- 
ment has  been  conducted  for  five  years  with  uniformly 
the  same  results,  the  question  so  determined  may  be 
regarded  as  settled. 

Experiments  have  been  conducted  under  the  auspices 
of  this  Department  in  every  part  of  the  State,  under 
various  conditions  for  six  years.  In  these  experiments 
the  compost  of  superphosphate  and  kamit  with  cotton 
seed  and  stable  manure  has  been  compared  every  year 
with  the  best  grades  of  commercial  fertilizers,  with  re- 
sults most  favorable  to  the  compost. 

While  pea  vines  and  lime  furnish  the  cheapest  and  most 
effective  means  of  restoring  fertility  to  worn  soils,  and  of 
maintaining  it  in  those  not  yet  exhausted,  the  compost 


262  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

of  superphosphate  and  kainit  with  stable  manure  and 
cotton  seed  furnishes,  beyond  question,  the  most  econom- 
ical manure  the  Southern  farmer  or  planter  can  apply  to 
his  crop  from  year  to  year. 

Besides  supplying  plant  food  in  the  best  and  most 
available  forms,  the  compost  exerts  a  mechanical  influence 
upon  the  soil  not  produced  by  the  plain  commercial  fer- 
tilizers. Either  the  composts  or  the  pea  vines  will  supply 
all  the  ammonia  needed  in  our  soils;  the  composts  for 
special  manuring  of  crops,  while  the  pea  vines  will  furnish 
ammonia  and  humus  to  the  whole  soil.  It  must  not, 
however,  be  understood  that  ammonia  is  the  only  im- 
portant element  of  plant  food  supplied  by  these  cheap 
sources  of  fertility.  On  the  contrary,  they  supply  all  of 
the  elements  of  plant  food.  Some  of  these,  however,  exist 
in  such  small  percentages  that  very  large  quantities  of  the 
substances  must  be  applied  to  supply  these  elements  in 
sufficient  quantities  for  the  production  of  maximum 
crops.  The  principal  deficiency  is  in  the  percentage  of 
phosphoric  acid  contained  in  pea  vines  and  stable  manure. 
This  is  supplied  by  the  addition  of  superphosphate  in  the 
compost  at  the  time  of  putting  it  up.  The  pea  vines  may 
be  manured  with  superphosphates,  and  thus  at  the  same 
time  supply  this  essential  element  of  fertility  to  the  soil, 
and  increase  the  growth  of  vines  to  be  returned  to  the 
soil. 

A  comparison  of  the  analyses  of  the  Southern  field  pea 
with  that  of  clover,  which  has  been  used  as  a  soil-improver 
so  long,  shows  very  slight  difference  so  far  as  either  their 
feeding  or  manurial  value  is  concerned.  It  is  not  neces- 
sary to  speak  of  the  value  of  stable  manure  and  cotton 
seed  as  manure.  Their  value  is  known  to  all  who  till 
Southern  soil. 


APPENDIX.  263 

FORMULA   FOR   COMPOSTS. 

If  the  stable  manure  and  cotton  seed  have  been  pro- 
tected from  waste  by  exposure  to  rain  and  sun,  the  fol- 
lowing formula  is  recommended : 

Stable  manure 650  pounds. 

Green  cotton  seed 650        " 

Superphosphate 700        " 

Making  a  ton  of 2,000  pounds. 

If  the  compost  is  intended  for  use  on  soils  particularly 
deficient  in  potash,  the  proportion  of  cotton  seed  and 
stable  manure  may  be  reduced  fifty  pounds  each,  and 
one  hundred  pounds  of  kainit  used  instead.  The 
formula  would  then  be: 

Stable  manure 600  pounds. 

Cotton  seed,  green 600       " 

Superphosphate 700        " 

Kainit 100        « 


Making  a  ton  of 2,000  pounds. 

These  ingredients  may  be  varied  in  proportions  to 
adapt  the  resulting  composts  to  different  soils  or  crops, 
but  either  of  the  above  will  be  found  to  give  satisfactory 
results  on  every  class  of  soils  and  on  all  of  our  cultivated 
crops. 

DIRECTIONS  FOR  COMPOSTING. — The  ingredients  may 
be  mixed  either  by  building  up  the  heap  by  alternate 
layers  of  the  ingredients,  or  they  may  be  thoroughly 
mixed  and  then  thrown  into  a  heap.  In  either  case  water 
should  be  freely  used  on  the  coarse  materials  while  com- 
posting. 

The  following  directions,  which  have  been  given  in 
former  publications  of  this  Department,  have  been  gener- 
ally followed  by  those  who  have  used  the  compost  with 
most  satisfactory  results.  Most  farmers  prefer  the  plan 
of  mixing  the  ingredients  well  before  placing  them  in  the 
heap  for  fermentation.  Under  this  plan  the  mingling  of 
the  ingredients  is  more  complete  during  the  process  of 


264  TRUCK-FARMING  AT  THE  SOUTH. 

fermentation,  and  hence  its  effects  are  probably  more 
thorough,  though  both  plans  have  given  good  results. 

DIRECTIONS  FOR  COMPOSTING. — Spread  under  shelter 
a  layer  of  stable  manure  four  inches  thick;  on  this 
sprinkle  a  portion  of  the  phosphate ;  next  spread  a  layer 
of  cotton  seed  three  inches  thick ;  wet  these  thoroughly 
with  water,  and  then  apply  more  of  the  phosphate ;  next 
spread  another  layer  of  stable  manure  three  inches  thick, 
and  continue  to  repeat  these  layers  in  the  above  order, 
and  in  proportion  to  the  quantity  of  each  used  to  the 
ton,  until  the  material  is  consumed.  Cover  the  whole 
mass  with  stable  manure,  or  scrapings  from  the  lot,  one 
or  two  inches  thick.  Allow  the  heap  to  stand  in  this 
condition  until  a  thorough  fermentation  takes  place, 
which  will  require  from  three  to  six  weeks,  according  to 
circumstances;  dependent  upon  proper  degree  of  moisture 
and  the  strength  of  materials  used.  When  the  cotton 
seeds  are  thoroughly  killed,  with  a  sharp  hoe  or  mattock, 
cut  down  vertically  through  the  layers ;  pulverize  and 
shovel  into  a  heap,  where  the  fermentation  will  be  re- 
newed, and  the  compost  be  still  further  improved.  Let 
it  lie  two  weeks  after  cutting  down;  it  will  then  be  ready 
for  use. 

The  following  plan  of  mixture  gives  equally  satisfactory 
results :  Mix  the  cotton  seed  and  the  stable  manure  in 
proper  proportion,  moisten  them  with  water,  apply  the 
proper  proportion  of  phosphate  and  mix  thoroughly, 
shoveling  into  a  mass  as  prepared. 

There  is  some  advantage  in  this  plan,  from  the  fact 
that  the  ingredients  are  thoroughly  commingled  during 
fermentation. 

FOR  COTTON. — Apply  in  the  opening  furrow  two  hun- 
dred pounds,  and  with  the  planting  seed  seventy-five  or 
one  hundred  pounds,  making  in  all  two  hundred  and 
seventy-five  or  three  hundred  pounds  per  acre.  If  it  is 


APPENDIX.  265 

desired  to  apply  a  larger  quantity,  open  furrows  the  de- 
sired distance,  and  over  them  sow  broadcast  four  hun- 
dred pounds  per  acre ;  bed  the  land  and  then  apply  one 
hundred  pounds  per  acre  with  the  seed. 

FOB  CORN. — Apply  in  the  hill,  by  the  side  of  the  seed, 
one  gill  to  the  hill.  An  additional  application  around 
the  stalk,  before  the  first  plowing,  will  largely  increase 
the  yield  of  grain. 


AT  THE  SOUTH. 


USEFUL    TABLES. 


A  TABLE    SHOWING  THE    NUMBER  OF    HILLS  OK    PLANTS    IN  AN  ACRE  OF 

LAND  AT  GIVEN  DISTANCES,   FROM   12  FEET  BY   12  FEET, 

TO  ONE  FOOT  BY  ONE  FOOT. 


Feet. 

Per 

Acre. 

Feet. 

Per 
Acre. 

Feet. 

Per 

Acre. 

Feet. 

Per 
Acre. 

12  0  by  12.0-     302 

7.  Oby  1.6 

4,148 

4.  Oby  3.0 

3,630~ 

3.0by2.6 

5,808 

12.0  by  10.0      363 

7.  Oby  1.0 

6,222 

4.  Oby  2.  9 

3,960 

3.  Oby  2.  3 

6.453 

12.0  by    5.0      726 

6.  Oby  6.0 

1,210 

4.  Oby  2.  6 

4,356 

3.  Oby  2.0 

7,260 

11.0  by  11.0 

360 

6.  Oby  5.6 

1.320 

4.  Oby  2.  3 

4,840  ! 

3.  Oby  1.9     8,297 

ll.'iby  10.0 

396 

6.  Oby  5.0 

1,452 

4.  Oby  2.0 

5,445 

3  Oby  1.6     9,680 

11.0  by    5.0 

792 

6.  Oby  4  6 

1.613 

4.  Oby  1.9 

6,222 

3.  Oby  1.3  11.616 

10.0  by  10.0 

4% 

6.0  by  4.0 

1,815 

4  Oby  1.6 

7.2to 

3.  Oby  1.0  14,520 

10.0  by    9.0i     484 

6.  Oby  3.  6 

2,074 

'  4.0  by  1.3 

8,712 

2.  9  by  2.  9     5,760 

10.0  by    8.0 

544 

6.  Oby  3.0 

2.420 

4.  Oby  1.0 

10  810  , 

2.  9  by  2.  6     6.&S8 

10.0  by    7.0 

622 

6.  Oby  2.  6 

2.904 

3.  9  by  3.  9 

3.097 

2.  9  by  2.  3     7.040 

10.0  by    6.0      72.'} 

6.  Oby  2.0 

3.630 

3.  9  by  3.  6 

3,318 

2.  9  by  2.0     7.920 

10.0  by    5.0     871 

6.  Oby  1.6 

4,840 

3.  9  by  3.3 

3.574  ! 

2.  9  by  1.9     9,051 

10.0  by    4.0  1,089 

6.  Oby  1.0 

7.2CO 

3.  9  by  3.0 

3.872 

2  9  by  1.6  10,560 

10  Oby    3.0  1,452 

5.  6  by  5.6 

1,417 

3.9by2.9 

4.224 

2  9  by  1.3  12,672 

10.0  by    2.0  2,178 

5.  6  by  5.0 

1.584 

3.  9  by  2.  6 

4,646 

2.  9  by  1.0  15,840 

lO.Obv    1  0 

4.356 

5.  6  by  4.  6 

1,760 

3.  9  by  2.  3 

5.162 

2.  6  by  2.6;    6,969 

9.  Oby    9.0      537 

5.  6  by  4.0 

1.980 

|  3.  9  by  2.0 

5,808 

2.  6  by  2.  3     7,740 

9.  Oby    8.0      605 

5  6  by  3.  6 

2,272 

3.  9  by  1.9 

6,637 

2.  6  by  2.0     8,712 

9.0  oy    7.0 

691 

5.6by3.0 

2.640 

3.  9  by  1.6 

7,744 

2.  6  by  1.9     9.956 

9.  Oby    6  0 

806 

5.6  by2.(J 

3JC8 

3.  9  by  1.3 

9,272 

2.  6  by  1.6  11.616 

9.  Oby    5.0 

963 

5.  6  by  2.0 

3,%0 

3.  9  by  1.0 

11.616 

2.  6  by  1.8!  13,939 

9.  Oby    4.0 

1.210 

5.  6  by  1.6 

5,280 

3.6  by  3.6 

3,555 

2.  6  by  1.0  17,424 

9.  Oby    30 

1,613 

5.  6  by  1.0 

7.920 

3.  6  by  3.  3 

3.829 

2.3bv2.3     8,604 

9  Oby    20 

2,420 

5.  Oby  5.0 

1.742 

3.  6  by  3.0 

4,148 

2.  3  by  2.0     9.680 

9  Oby    1.0 

4.840 

5.  Oby  4.  6 

1.936 

3.6  by  2.9 

4.525 

2.  3  by  1.9  11.062 

8  Oby    8.0 

681 

5.  Oby  4.0 

2,178 

3.  6  by  2.6 

4,978  '   2.  3  by     .6   12,906 

8  Oby    7.0 

777 

5.  Oby  3.  6 

2,489 

3.  6  by  2.  3 

5.S31 

2.  3  by    .3  15.488 

8.  Oby    6.0 

905 

5.  Oby  3.0 

2,904 

3  6  by  2.0     6,222 

2.  3  by    .0 

19.360 

8.  Oby    5.0 

1,089 

5.  Oby  2.6 

3,484 

3.  6  by  1.9 

7,111 

2.  Oby  2  0 

10.890 

8.  Oby    4.0 

1,361 

5  Oby  2.0 

4,356 

3.6by  1.6 

8.297 

2.  Oby  1.9 

12,445 

8.  Oby    3.0 

1,815 

5.  Oby  1.6 

5.8C8 

3.  6  by  1.3 

9.956 

2.0bv    .6 

14,520 

8.  Oby    2.0 

2,722 

5.  Oby  1  0 

8.712 

3  6  by  1  0 

12,445 

2.0  by    .3 

17,424 

8.  Oby    1.0 

5.415 

4.  6  by  4.0 

2.151 

3.  3  by  3.3 

4.124 

2.  Oby    .0 

21,780 

7.  Oby    70 

838 

4.  6  by  4.0 

2.420 

3.  3  by  3.0 

4.818 

1.9  by    .9 

14,223 

7.  Oby    6.6 

957 

4  6  by  3.6 

2.765 

3.  3  by  2.  9 

4.873 

1  9  by  1.6 

16,594 

7.  Oby    6.0 

1,037 

4.  6  by  3.0 

3.226 

3.  3  by  2.  6 

5,361 

1  9  by  1.3 

19,913 

7  Oby    5.6 

,131 

4.  6  by  2.6 

3.872 

3.  3  by  2.  3 

5,956 

1.9  by  1.0 

24.454 

7.  Oby    5  0 

.244 

4.  6  by  2.0 

4.840 

3.3  by  2.0 

6,701 

1.6byl  6 

19.360 

7.0  bf    4  6 

,332 

4.  6  by  1.6 

6,453 

3.  3  by  1.9 

7,658 

1.6  by  1.3 

23.232 

7  Oby    4.0 

,555 

4.6  by  1.0 

9,680 

3.  3  by  1  6 

8,935 

1.6  by  1.0 

29,040 

7  Oby    3.6 

,777 

4.  Oby  4.0 

2,722 

3.  3  by  1.3 

10,728 

1.3  by  1.3 

27.878 

7.  Oby    3.0 

2,074 

40  by  3.9 

2,904 

3.  3  by  1.0 

13,403 

1.3  by  1.0 

34.848 

7.  Oby    2.6 

2.489 

4  0  by  3  6 

3,111 

3  Oby  3.0 

4,840 

1.0  by  1.0 

43,560 

7.  Oby    2.0 

3,111 

4.  Oby  3.  3 

3,350 

3.  Oby  2.9 

5,289 

TABLE  SHOWING  THE  SQUARE  FEET  AND  FEET  SQUARE  OF  AN  ACRE, 
AND  ITS  FRACTIONS. 


Area. 

Square  Feet. 

Feet  Square. 

1   Acre. 

11 

43.560 
21.780 
14,520 
10,890 
5.445 

*«•*/• 

208V4 
147V2 
120V, 
104% 
733/4 
52'A 

TABLES. 


PABT-E    SHOWING    THE    AMOUNT    OF    NITROGEN,    PHOSPHORIC    ACID,    ANB 

POTASH,    IN   ONE   TON  OF   THE   FRESH    DUNG  AND   FRESH  URINE 

OF  DIFFERENT  ANIMALS,    AND   ALSO   OF   THE  DRAINAGE  » 

OF  THE  BARN-YARD. 


1  T0> 

r  FRESH 

DUNG. 

1   TON 

FRESH  I 

TRINE. 

Nitro- 
gen. 

Phos- 
phoric 
acid. 

Potash. 

Nitro- 
gen. 

Phos- 
plioric 
acid. 

Potash 

Horse             .        

Ibs. 
8.8 

Ibs. 
7.0 

Ibs. 
7.0 

Ibs. 
31  0 

Ibs. 

Ibs. 
30.0 

Cow 

5.8 

3.4 

2.0 

11  6 

9  8 

Sheep 

11  0 

6  2 

3  0 

39  0 

0  2 

45  2 

Swine 

12.0 

8.2 

5.2 

8.6 

1.4 

16  6 

Mean 

9  4 

6.2 

4.3 

22  5 

0  4 

25  4 

Drainage  of  barn  -yard  

3.0 

0.2 

9.8 

TABLE  SHOWING  CONTENTS  OF  A  HEAP   OF  MANURE  AT  DIFFERENT 
PERIODS,   EXPOSED    TO    RAIN,   ETC. 


When  put 

UP, 

Nov.  3. 

April  30. 

Aug.  S3. 

Nov.  15. 

Total  weight  of  manure  in  heap  
Water  in  the  heap  of  manure 

10,003 
6,617 

7,138 
4,707 

7.025 
5,304 

6,95  1 
5,167 

Total  organic  matter  

2,824 

1,678 

1,064 

947 

Total  inorganic  matter  
Total  nitrogen  in  heap  
Total  soluble  organic  matter  
Total  insoluble  organic  matter  
So  uble  mineral  matter 

559 
64.3 
218 
2576 
154 

753 
63.9 
305 
1,373 
204 

657 
46.3 

2.7 
857 
138 

840 
46.0 
193 

757 
130 

Insoluble  mineral  matter  

405 

549 

519 

710 

Nitrogen  in  soluble  matter  
Nitrogen  in  insoluble  matter  

14.9 
49.4 

21.4 
42.5 

13.2 
33.1 

12.9 
33.1 

TABLE  SHOWING  WEIGHT  OF  MANURE  PER  BUSHEL,   AND  PER  LOAD  OF 
50  BUSHELS.* 


No. 

KIND  AND  CONDITION   OF    MANURES. 

$34 

^ 

lH 

^2 

1 

Fresh  horse-manure  free  from  straw  

Ibs. 

37^ 

Ibs. 
1875 

9 

"         "           "         "       "       "     pressed.                     .... 

55 

2750 

3. 

Fresh  horse-manure,  as  used  for  bedding  pigs  

28 

1400 

4. 

r> 

"          "  pressed  
Horse-manure  from  pig  cellar. 

46 
50 

2300 
2500 

6. 

"       "       "     pressed  

72 

3600 

7 

Pig-manure  

57 

2850 

8 

"        u      pressed  

75 

3750 

9 

Pig-manure  and  dry  earth 

98 

4900 

10 

Sheep  manure  from  open  shed 

42 

2100 

11. 

"         "         "•       "    pressed  

65 

3250 

12 

Sheep-manure  from  closed  shed             

1400 

13 

"           ''         "          "         "    pressed                          .   ... 

38 

1900 

14 

Fresh  cow-dung  free  from  straw 

87 

4350 

15 

Hen-manure  

34 

1700 

16. 

"         "      pressed  

48 

2400 

Harris'  "  Talks  on  Manures.' 


INDEX. 


PAGE 

Acid  Phosphate  of  Lime 41 

Alliumcepa ...181 

Ammonia,  loss  from  Manure  pile..  27 

How  taken  up 18 

In  different  Soils 22 

In  the  Air 18 

In  Surface  Soil  only 23 

Salts  of 52 

Value  of 253 

Ammoniated  Superphosphate 42 

Analysis  of  Cow-pea 21 

Ash 21 

Ashes,  Use  of 48 

Ash  of  Roots  left  in  the  Soil 20 

Asparagus  offlcinalis 119 

Asparagus 119 

Bunchers 127 

Insects  In j  urious  to 129 

Raising  Plants 121 

Saving  Seed  of 128 

Varieties 120 

Atwater,  Prof.,  on  Fertilizers  ..   ..36 

On  use  of  Potash  Salts  44 

Barn-yard  Manure 31 

Bast,  Cuba 128 

Beans-  Bush  or  Snap 130 

Insects  Injurious  to 133 

Varieties  of 130 

Beet 134 

"  Bassano," 134 

"  Early  Blood  Turnip," 134 

"Egyptian," 134 

Beta  vulgaris 134 

Blue  Bird  a  Destroyer  of  Insects. . . 

116-119 

Bone  Meal 42 

Bonecole 178 

Boussingault  on  Nitrogen 11 

Box  for  Tomato  Plants 224 

Brassica  oleracea 137 

var.  Botrytis 163 

var.  sabellica 178 

Cabbages 137 

Analysis  of 144-149 

Club-foot  in 143 

368 


Cabbages,  Cow-peas  for 145 

Distance  apart 147 

Injured  by  Magnesium 44 

Insect  Enemies  of 152 

Manures  for 144 

Packing 149 

Puddling 147 

Seeds  and  Sowing 140 

Soils  for 142 

Sowing  in  place 146 

Transplanting 146 

Cabbage,  Varieties  of 187 

"Brunswick," 138 

"  Early  Summer," 138 

"Flat Dutch,  American,"..  139, 151 

"Fottler's  Brunswick," 139 

'•  Jersey  Wakefield," 189 

"  Schweinfurth," 138 

"Winningstadt," 138 

Carbonic  Acid  in  Soil 13 

Cauliflower 163 

Cutting  and  Packing 168 

Protecting 168 

Varieties 165 

"Algiers," 166 

"Early  Paris," 167 

u  Short-stemmed  Lenorraand,". 167 

"  Snowball," 165 

"Very  Early  Dwarf  Erfurt,  "..167 
Chenopodium  ambrosioides,  var.  An- 

thelminticum 60 

Chloride  of  Magnesium        44 

Chuck-will's  Widow  and  Spring 76 

CUrullus  wdgaris 229 

Clover,  Analysis  of .  149 

Cold  Frames 72,  80-81 

Composting  Manures 28 

Materials  for 28 

Cotton  Seed  as  Cattle  Food 37 

Injurious  to  Swine 37 

In  Compost 37 

Cotton-seed  Meal,  Value  as  Manure  29 

Cow,  Manure 31 

Annual  Product 32 

Urine  from.  Annually 32 

,  Cow-pea,  Analysis  of  Vine 21 


IKDEX. 


269 


Cow-pea,  Analysis  of  Ash 21 

Compared  with  Clover 146 

Constituents  of  One  Ton 22 

Green,  Manuring  with 19 

Hook  to  Turn  Under 25 

Mulchingwith 23 

Nitrogen  in 21 

Plowing  Under 24 

Roller  to  Cut 25 

Cow-penning,  Utility  of 3J 

Crate,  a  Barrel 94 

A  Bushel .92 

Crates,  Blocks  for  Making 94 

Crops,  Rotation  of 54 

To  follow  in  Rotation 57 

Cuba  Bast 128 

Cucumber 169 

Improved  White  Spine 170 

Insects  Attacking 173 

Seed  Saving 172 

Cucumus  sativus 169 

Cucurbita  pepo  209 

Cultivation,  Benefits  of 14-15 

Cut-worms  Absent  from  Cow-pen- 
ned Land 33 

Cynodim  Dactyl&n 61 

Cyperus  rotundus,  var.  Hydra 60 

"Deaconing"  Packages 91 

Dew 72 

Dibble,  Use  of 85 

Drainage 11 

Drain-water,  Nitrogen 23 

Earth  Closets,  Manure  from 40 

Economy  in  Fertilization 257 

Egg  Plant  175 

Entomology,  Importance  of  97 

Euimtorium  fceniculaceitm 60 

Excrement,  Yearly,  of  Man 39 

Contents  of..  40 

Value  Depends  on  Food 29 

Fall  Plowing  Not  Useful 12 

Fertility  Improved  by  Preventing 

Evaporation 23 

Fertilization,  Economy  in    257 

Fertilizer,  Definition  of 17 

Fertilizers,  Analyses  of 232 

Ashes  Leached  and  Unleached.  48 

Ashes.  Constituents 48 

Bone  Meal 42 

Cotton  Seed 37 

Commercial 36 

Conditions  of  Use 36 

Fish-scrap 38 


Fertilizers— Fish-guano 38 

Guano,  Peruvian 34 

Chincha 85 

Guanape 35 

Gypsum 51 

Kainit 44 

Land  Plaster 51 

Laws  Concerning 35 

Lime 48-19 

Muck 41 

Night-soil 39 

Nitrate  of  Soda 52 

Nitrogenous 52 

Value  of  ... 52 

Potash 43 

Potash  Salts 44 

Ashes  Preferred  to  48 

Chlorides 47 

Composition  of 45 

Sulphates 46 

Using 47 

Poudrette 40 

Prof.  Atwater  on 36 

Salt 50 

Soda.  Nitrate 52 

Superphosphate  of  Lime 41 

Florida,  Vegetables  from,  in  1882..    5 
Forbes,  Prof.  S.  A.,  on  Blue  Birds.  116 

Fragaria  Chilensis 237 

grandiflora 237 

vesca 237 

V~rginiana 237 

Frost 73 

Indications  of 75 

Tableof  Last 76 

Germination  of  Seeds 62 

"Grass," 121 

Grass,  Salt-Mai  sh,  Value  of 33 

Green  Manuring 19 

Guano— see  Fertilizers 34 

Guinea  Squash 175 

Gypsum 51 

Hand-weeding 15 

Hay,  Analysis  of  . .  38 

Hoeing 15 

Hook  for  Turning  Under  Cow-peas.  25 

Horse,  Amount  of  Excrement 29 

Hot-beds,  Ancient  Use 71 

Construction  of 78 

Rarely  Needed 72 

Humus 18 

Insects 96 

Blue  Bird  Destroys 116 


270 


ODEX. 


Insects,  Change  of  Form  in . .  105 

Chrysalis  Stage  of 105 

Classification  of 105 

Colorado  Potato  beetle, Travels.  100 

Destroyed  by  Birds 114 

Egg  Stage  of 105 

Friendly 98 

Harlequin -bug,  Migration 100 

Hibernating 99 

Imago 105 

Instincts  of 97 

Larva  Stage  of 105 

Migration  of 100 

Not  Killed  by  Cold ..  103 

Parasitic 99 

Perfect  Stage.  105 

Pupa  Stage  of 105 

Kapid  Reproduction  of 103 

Stages  of  Life  of 105  j 

Tumble-bug  Announces  Spring  76 

Two- brooded  at  South 99 

Achetidce 114 

Ac/ididce 113 

Acronycta  oblinita 129 

jEgeria  cvcurbitce 212 

Agrotit  Coohranii 108 

devastata 109 

subgothica 103 

teiifera 107 

Analcis  frajarice 249 

Anew  tristis 212 

Anchyloperafragance 249 

Antfiomyia  ceparum 190 

Aphidius,  genus 160 

Aphides  Born  Alive 104 

Aphis  brassicce 109 

Aphis  Lions 160 

Aphis  parasites ...  160 

Aspara-^us-beetle 129 

Baridius  trinotatus 205 

Barn-beetle 19  J 

Bean-  weevil 183 

Blister-beetles 133. 206 

Botys  repetitali* 101 

Bruchusfabce 133 

Bmchus  granariiis 1 94 

Bruchuspisi 194 

Bugs,  Ordpr  of 105 

Butterflies  and  Moth s...  ...   ..105 

Cabhage-botys  153 

Cabbage-butterflies         155 

Cabbage  Flea-beetle 153 

Cabbage  Plusia. 154 


Insects— Cabbage  Plutella 154 

Cabbage-worms,  Green 153 

Cabbage-worms,  Light-colored..  155 

Cabbage-worm  Parasite 100 

Calosoma  calidum 113 

Capsus  oblineatm 161 

Cassida  awichalcea 219 

bivittata ...219 

guttata '19 

Texana 102,  178 

Celcena  renigera 109 

Chelymorpha  cassidea 220 

Chinch-bug,  False .161 

Cicada 113 

Clubbed  Tortoise-beetle 206 

Coccinella,  species  of 159 

Colaspis  flavida 250 

Coleoptera 105 

Colorado-beetle,  False 178 

Corn-seed-worm 2-28 

Cotton- boll- woim -.27-228 

Crickets 114 

Crioceiis  asparayi ...  ...  129 

Cucumber  Flea-beetle 173 

Cut-worms  106 

Dark-sided 108 

Glassy 109 

Greasy .     . .  107 

Natural  Enemies .     112 

Remedies  for 110 

Small  White  Bristly 109 

Western  Striped 108 

W-marked 109 

Deloyala  cluvata 206 

Diabrotica  12-punctafa 174,  212 

Diabrotica  mttata 173,  212 

Diptera ...105 

Dcryphora  juncta 101, 178 

Emphytus  maculatus 250 

Fall  Web-worm 183 

False  C  inch-bug 161 

Fiery  Ground-beetle 113 

Flea-beetle 153 

Golden-eyed  Flies 100 

Golden  Tortoise-beetle 219 

Gortynia  nitela  204 

Grain  Bruchus 194 

Grasshoppers 113 

Grass-worm 175 

Gryttotalpa  borealis 114 

brevtpetinis 1 14 

vulgaris , 114 

Hadena  devastata 109 


INDEX. 


271 


Insects— Hadena  renigera 1C9 

Haltica  cucumeris 173  ! 

Harlequin  Cabbage-bug 160  I 

Hdiuthis  armiger'' 227-228  ! 

Hetniptera 105  • 

Hippodamia  comergens 162 

H(,menoptera 195 

Hyphantria  lextor 133 

June-bug 08 

Lace-winged  Flies 160 

Lachnosterna  quercina 206 

Lady-birds,  or  Bugs 159-162 

Laphrygma  frugiperda 142-175 

Lema  trilineata 205 

Lepidoptera 105 

Locusta  migrator ia 113 

Locusts 113 

Lyt  a  marginata 206 

Lytta,  species  of .     133 

Matnestra  picta 156 

Melon-worm 236 

Mole-cricket 115 

Mottled  Tortoise-beetle  219 

Nerve- winged 105 

Neuroptera 105 

Noctua  dandestina 109 

Nysius  destructor 161 

Opion  Flies  190 

Ortalis  flexa 190 

Orthoptera 105 

Paidacus  geminatus 113 

Pea-weevils .194 

PhaceJlura  hijalinalalis 236 

Phacdliira  nitidalis 175 

Pickle-worm 17  > 

Pieris  oleracea 155 

Pieiis  Protodice 15(5 

rapce 155 

Plant-lice 158 

Enemies  to 159 

Plant-louse,  Fecundity  of 103 

Ptusia  brassicce 154 

Plutella  cruciferamm 154 

Potato-stalk  Borer 204 

Potato  -stalk  Weevil 204 

Pot-herb  Butterfly 155 

Pteromalus  puparum 103, 155 

Rape  Butterfly 155 

Shield-winged 105 

Smeared  Dagger 129 

Southern  Cabbage  Butterfly 156 

Sphinx  Carolina. 228 

cingulata ,,  ......  219 


Insects  -Sphinx  quinqiiemaculata .  .228 

Spilosoma  Virginica 133 

Squash-bug...   .   212 

Squash-vine  borer 212 

S.rachia  histrwnica 160 

Straight-winged 105 

Strawberry  Cro-.vn-borer -.49 

Strawberry  Leaf-beetle ^0 

Strawberry  Leaf-roller 24') 

Straw  berry- worm 250 

Striped  Cucumb  r-beetb..  .173,  212 

Sweet  potato  Moth 219 

Syrphus  Flies 160 

Tarnished  Plant  bug 161 

Three-lined  Leaf  beetle .  .205 

Tortoise-beetle 178 

Twelve-spotted    Squash-beetle 

174. 212 

Two-striped    fcquash-btetle 219 

Two-winged 105 

White  Ant,  Fecundity  of 103 

White-grub 206 

Yellow  Bear  Caterpillar 133 

Zebra  Caterpillar 156 

Ipomma  Batatas 213 

Kale 178 

'•Blue  Curled.''  179 

"  Green-curled  Scotch." 179 

Labor 7 

Hours  of 9 

Pay  of 8 

Lactuca  saliva 180 

Land  Plaster 51 

Land  Renovation  of 10 

Lawes  &  Gilbert's  Wheat  without 

Manure 56 

Lawes,Sir  J.B.,  on  Loss  of  Nitrogen  23 

On  Nitrogen 11 

On  Value  of  Manure  from  dif- 
ferent Foods 29 

Leaf  Mould 41 

Leaves,  Office  of 60 

Leguminous  Plants 21 

Lettuce 18) 

"  Boston  Market." 180 

"Tennis  Ball." 180 

"White  Cabbage." 180 

Lime,  How  applied 50 

Liberates  Ammonia 48 

Su  perphosphate  of 41 

Liquid  Manure 53 

Location  of  Truck-farm 10 

Longevity  of  Seeds 6;i 


272 


INDEX. 


Lycopersicum  esculenlum  220 

McAlpine's.  Capt.  J.  W.,  Hook  and 

Roller 25 

Magnesium,  Chloride  of 44 

Injurious  to  Cabbages 44 

Potatoes   44 

Manure,  Applied  in  the  Hill 31 

Bars-yard 31 

Composting 28 

Constituents  of  50  Tons 144 

Covered  and  Uncovered.  Value 

of 26 

Cow 31 

Constituents  of 32 

Dailyfroma 32 

Definition  of 17 

Earth  Closet 40 

Economy  needed  in 16 

Fermentation,  to  retard  rapid..  27 
Fresh  and  Decomposed,  Compo- 
sition oi' 2T 

Green 19 

Importance  of 16 

In  large  Piles 28 

Liquid 53 

How  used 54 

Loss  in 26 

Manner  of  applying 30 

Moist,  Must  be  kept 25 

Necessary  to  Success 15 

Night  Soil 3(f 

Analysis 39 

Of  Oxen 32 

Poultry 34 

Rotation  needed 58 

Sheep 34 

Stable 25 

New  York  Streetcar 29 

Swine  33 

Value  depends  upon  Food  of 

Animal 29 

Weight  of 32 

Yield  from  10  >  Ibs.  each  Hay, 

Oats,  and  Grass 29 

Manures,  Relative  Value  of 33 

Kinds  and  Uses 15 

Markets 94 

Melons  to  New  York  in  1882 5 

M  enhaden 38 

Moss-bunkers 38 

Mo'es.  Useful 9« 

Muck 41 

Mulch.  Value  of  Cow-peas  for 23 


Negro  Labor  .......................    7 

Night  Soil  ........................  39 

Composting  ..................  40 

From  Earth  Closets  ............  40 

Nitrateof  Soda  ....................  52 

Nitric  Acid,  How  taken  up..  .  .  ..  18 

In  the  Air  ....................  18 

Nitrogen  in  Acre  of  Soil  ...........  11 

In  Cow-peas  .....  ..............  21 

In  Drain  Water    ..............  23 

In  Human  faeces  ...............  40 

Urine  ...............  40 

In  Soils  .......................  49 

Oat  Straw,  Analysis  and  Value  of.  .  33 
Onion  ..........................  181 

Analysis  of  .....................  182 

Bermuda  .......................  182 

"  Giant  Rocca."  ................  182 

"  Globe  Madeira.'1  ............  183 

Insects  Attacking  .....  .....  .  .  190 

"Italian  Queen."  ............  183 

"  Madeira."  ...................  182 

Potato.  ...  .....................  1^3 

"  Red  Wethersfleld."  .........  183 

Seeds,  Raising  .................  183 

Sets  ..........................  189 

"  Yellow  Danvers."  ...........  183 

Opuntia  vulgaris  ..................  62 

Oxen,  Amount  of  Manure  from  ____  32 

Ozone  .............................  18 

Packing  .........................    90 

Paritium  datum..  ...  ..........    .128 


Pea 


191 


"Black-eyed"  ..................  192 

'•Early  Alpha"  ..............     19 

'•Daniel  O'Rourke"  .........  192 

"  Philadelphia  Extra  Early  "...  191 
"  White  Marrowfat  "  ...........  192 

Insect  Enemies  ................  194 

Penning  of  Sheep  ...............  y..  84 

Peruvian  Guano  ....................  34 

Pha*eolu$  vulgaris  ..................  1*0 

Phosphates  in  Urine  ...............  33 

Phospboric  Acid  .................  41 

Value  of  .......................  253 

Pisum  sfitivum  ....................  191 

Plants,  Composition  of  ............  17 

Endogenous  ..................  59 

Exogenous  ...................  .'9 

Manner  of  Growth  .............  59 

Plaster  land  ............  ............  51 

Plowing  De(;p  .....................  11 

Fall  not  Useful  ...,,.,  ........  13 


INDEX. 


273 


Portulaca  okratxa 61 

Potash 43 

For  Potatoes 44 

Salts 44 

Value  of 253 

Poudrette 40 

Poultry  Manure 34 

Potatoes 195 

"Beauty  of  Hebron" 197 

'•Burbank" 197 

"ChiliRed" 187 

"Early  Rose".... 197 

Diseases  of 204 

Injured  by  Magnesium 44 

Insects  injurious  to 204 

Require  Potash 44 

Second  Crop      .   203 

Seed,  Size  of 197 

Pyrethrum  Powder 157 

Quick-lime 48 

Radish    207 

"  Long  Scarlet  Short-top  " 207 

"  Scarlet  Turnip  " 207 

Raffla 123 

Raphanus  safivus 207 

Holier-cutting  for  Cow-peas 25 

Roots  left  in  the  Soil    20 

Rotation  of  Crops 54 

Points  to  Aim  at 57 

Russian  Black  Lands 11 

Salt,  Common 50 

Salt-marsh  Grass.  Analysis  of 33 

Grass  for  Penning 33 

Mud  for  Penning 33 

Savannah,  Produce  from,  in  1882. . .    5 

Schmidt,  Prof.,  on  Nitrogen 11 

Seeds 62,70 

Depth  to  Cover 70 

Drills  for.... 70 

Failure.  Cause  of 69 

Germination  of 62,67 

Heatreqnired 67 

Home-grown 68 

Keeping  of 66 

Longevityof 63 

Quality  of 63 

Roller,  Use  of 71 

Soaking  67 

Sowing 62 

Testing 65 

"Treading  in" 71 

Sheep  Manure 34 

ForPenning f. ,..,....    34 


Sialia  SMis 116 

Snakes,  Useful 99 

Snow,  Ammonia  in 22 

Soda,  Nitrate  of 52 

Soil 10 

Ammonia  in 22 

How  Formed 17 

Nitrogen  in  an  Acre 11 

Preparation  of 12 

Stirring,  Importance  of 14 

Solatium  Caroli'tiense 101-102 

Elffiagnifolium ^...102 

Melongena 175 

tuberosum 195 

Spinach 208 

Spinacia  oleracea 208 

Spring,  Announced  by  Animals 76 

Sprouts 178 

Squash 2  9 

" Early  White  Bush  Scallop  "..210 
"Early  Summer  Crook-neck "..210 

Insects  injurious  to 212 

Strawberry 238 

"Charleston" 239 

"Crescent" 238  241 

Culture  of 245 

"  Hovey's  Seedling  " 238 

Manure  for 243 

Methods  of  Planting 243 

Mulching 247 

"Neunan" 239 

Setting  Plants. . . 244 

"Wilson" 239 

"  Wilson's  Albany  " 239,241 

Insects  injurious  to 249 

Picking  and  Marketing 248 

Sexes  of 238 

Superphosphate,  Ammoniated 42 

Of  Lime 41 

Sweet  Potato 213 

"  Brimstone  " 213 

"  Delaware  " 213 

Insects  injurious  to 218 

"Jersey" 213 

"Nansemond" 213 

"Pumpkin  Yam" 214 

Raising  "Draws"  214 

Raising  Seed  217 

Yam  Varieties 213 

Thinning  Plants 15 

Toads,  Useful  99 

Tomato 220 

Insects  injurious  to 228 


274 


INDEX. 


tomato  Plants,  Box  for 224 

Picking  and  Packing, 226 

Kaising  Plants 222 

Saving  Seeds 228 

Transplanting 225 

Varieties,  "  Acme  " 220 

"Fejee"... '-'20 

*'  Hathaway  " 220 

"  Livingston's  Perfection  "..220 

•'Pear-shaped" 220 

"Red  Cherry" 220 

"  Round  Smooth  Red  " 220 

"Trophy 220 

"  Yellow  Cherry. 220 

"Topping"  Packages 97 

Transplanting 82 

Utility  of 86 

Turnip,  Analysis  of.... ...149 

Urea,  Composition  of 32 

Amount  in  Urine  of  Animals...  32 
Urine  Annually  Voided  by  Cow. ...  32 

Phosphates  in 33 

Ureain 32 

Vegetables  from  Florida  in  1882  —    5 

Savannah  in  1882 5 

Vegetable  Refuse 38 


Ventilation  of  Packages 91 

Voelcker,  Prof 11 

Wages  in  Interior  of  Georgia. .....    9 

Laborers' 8 

Walsh,  Mr.,  on  Birds  116 

Water  and  Watering 87 

Watermelon 229 


"Rattlesnake," 231 

When,  is  Ripe 235 

Weather,   Importance  of   Observa- 
tions   75 

Weeds 59 

Bermuda-grass 61 

Coco-grass —  60 

Dog-fennel 60 

Nut-grass , 60 

Prickly  Pear 62 

Purslane 61 

War  Against  14 

Wormseed 60 

Weight  of  Manure 32 

Wheat  Unmanured  for  20  Years 56 

Whip-poor-will  and  Spring 76 

Woods-earth 41 


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Diseases  of  Swine 

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the  Purdue  University.  A  concise,  practical  and  popular  guide 
to  the  prevention  and  treatment  of  the  diseases  of  swine.  With 
the  discussions  on  each  disease  are  given  its  causes,  symptoms, 
treatment  and  means  of  prevention.  Every  part  of  the  book 
impresses  the  reader  with  the  fact  that  its  writer  is  thoroughly 
and  practically  familiar  with  all  the  details  upon  which  he 
treats.  All  technical  and  strictly  scientific  terms  are  avoided, 
so  far  as  feasible,  thus  making  the  work  at  once  available  to 
the  practical  stock  raiser  as  well  as  to  the  teacher  and  student. 
Illustrated.  5x7  inches.  190  pages.  Cloth $0.75 

Spraying  Crops — Why,  When  and  How 

By  CLARENCE  M.  WEED,  D.  Sc.  The  present  fourth  edition 
has  been  rewritten  and  reset  throughout  to  bring  it  thoroughly 
up  to  date,  so  that  it  embodies  the  latest  practical  information 
gleaned  by  fruit  growers  and  experiment  station  workers.  So 
much  new  information  has  come  to  light  since  the  third  edition 
was  published  that  this  is  practically  a  new  book,  needed  by 
those  who  have  utilized  the  earlier  editions,  as  well  as  by  fruit 
growers  and  farmers  generally.  Illustrated.  136  pages.  5x7 
inches.  Cloth. $0.50 


Successful  Fruit  Culture 

By  SAMUEL  T.  MAYNARD.  A  practical  guide  to  the  culti" 
vation  and  propagation  of  Fruits,  written  from  the  standpoint 
of  the  practical  fruit  grower  who  is  striving  to  make  his 
business  profitable  by  growing  the  best  fruit  possible  and  at 
the  least  cost.  It  is  up-to-date  in  every  particular,  and  covers 
the  entire  practice  of  fruit  culture,  harvesting,  storing,  mar- 
keting, forcing,  best  varieties,  etc.,  etc.  It  deals  with  principles 
first  and  with  the  practice  afterwards,  as  the  foundation,  prin- 
ciples of  plant  growth  and  nourishment  must  always  remain 
the  same,  while  practice  will  vary  according  to  the  fruit 
grower's  immediate  conditions  and  environments.  .  Illustrated. 
265  pages.  5x7  inches.  Cloth.  .  .  .  .  $1.00 

Plums  and  Plum  Culture 

By  F.  A.  WAUGH.  A  complete  manual  for  fruit  growers, 
nurserymen,  farmers  and  gardeners,  on  all  known  varieties 
of  plums  and  their  successful  management.  This  book  marks 
an  epoch  in  the  horticultural  literature  of  America.  It  is  a 
complete  monograph  of  the  plums  cultivated  in  and  indigenous 
to  North  America.  It  will  be  found  indispensable  to  the 
scientist  seeking  the  most  recent  and  authoritative  informa- 
tion concerning  this  group,  to  the  nurseryman  who  wishes  to 
handle  his  varieties  accurately  and  intelligently,  and  to  the 
cultivator  who  would  like  to  grow  plums  successfully.  Illus- 
trated. 391  pages.  5x7  inches.  Cloth.  .  .  .  $1.50 

Fruit  Harvesting,  Storing,  Marketing 

By  F.  A.  WAUGH.  A  practical  guide  to  the  picking,  stor- 
ing, shipping  and  marketing  of  fruit.  The  principal  subjects 
covered  are  the  fruit  market,  fruit  picking,  sorting  and  pack- 
ing, the  fruit  storage,  evaporating,  canning,  statistics  of  the 
fruit  trade,  fruit  package  laws,  commission  dealers  and  dealing, 
cold  storage,  etc.,  etc.  No  progressive  fruit  grower  can  afford 
to  be  without  this  most  valuable  book.  Illustrated.  232  pages. 
5x7  inches.  Cloth.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  $1.00 

Systematic  Pomology 

By  F.  A.  WAUGH,  professor  of  horticulture  and  landscape 
gardening  in  the  Massachusetts  agricultural  college,  formerly 
of  the  university  of  Vermont.  This  is  the  first  book  in  the 
English  language  which  has  ever  made  the  attempt  at  a  com- 
plete and  comprehensive  treatment  of  systematic  pomology. 
It  presents  clearly  and  in  detail  the  whole  method  by  which 
fruits  are  studied.  The  book  is  suitably  illustrated.  288  pages. 
5x7  inches.  Cloth $1.00 


Feeding  Farm  Animals 

By  Professor  THOMAS  SHAW.  This  book  is  intended  alike 
for  the  student  and  the  farmer.  The  author  has  succeeded  in 
giving  in  regular  and  orderly  sequence,  and  in  language  so 
simple  that  a  child  can  understand  it,  the  principles  that  govern 
the  science  and  practice  of  feeding  farm  animals.  Professor 
Shaw  is  certainly  to  be  congratulated  on  the  successful  manner 
in  which  he  has  accomplished  a  most  difficult  task.  His  book 
is  unquestionably  the  most  practical  work  which  has  appeared 
on  the  subject  of  feeding  farm  animals.  Illustrated.  Sl/2  x  8 
inches.  Upward  of  500  pages.  Cloth.  ......  $2.00 


Profitable  Dairying 

By  C.  L.  Peck.  A  practical  guide  to  successful  dairy  man- 
agement. The  treatment  of  the  entire  subject  is  thoroughly 
practical,  being  principally  a  description  of  the  methods  prac- 
ticed by  the  author.  A  specially  valuable  part  of  this  book 
consists  of  a  minute  description  of  the  far-famed  model  dairy 
farm  of  Rev.  J.  D.  Detrich,  near  Philadelphia,  Pa.  On  this 
farm  of  fifteen  acres,  which  twenty  years  ago  could  not  main- 
tain one  horse  and  two  cows,  there  are  now  kept  twenty-seven 
dairy  cattle,  in  addition  to  two  horses.  ^  All  the  roughage, 
litter,  bedding,  etc.,  necessary  for  these  animals  are  grown  on 
these  fifteen  acres,  more  than  most  farmers  could  accomplish 
on  one  hundred  acres.  Illustrated.  5x7  inches.  200  pages. 
Cloth. $0.75 

Practical  Dairy  Bacteriology 

By  Dr.  H.  W.  CONN,  of  Wesleyan  University.  A  complete 
exposition  of  important  facts  concerning  the  relation  of  bacteria 
to  various  problems  related  to  milk.  A  book  for  the  class- 
room, laboratory,  factory  and  farm.  Equally  useful  to  the 
teacher,  student,  factory  man  and  practical  dairyman.  Fully 
illustrated  with  83  original  pictures.  340  pages.  Cloth. 
5>/2  x  8  inches $1.25 


Modern    Methods  of  Testing   Milk  and  Milk 
Products 

By  L.  L.  VANSLYKE.  This  is  a  clear  and  concise  discussion 
of  the  approved  methods  of  testing  milk  and  milk  products. 
All  the  questions  involved  in  the  various  methods  of  testing 
milk  and  cream  are  handled  with  rare  skill  and  yet  in  so  plain 
a  manner  that  they  can  be  fully  understood  by  all.  The  book 
should  be  in  the  hands  of  every  dairyman,  teacher  or  student. 
Illustrated.  214  pages.  5x7  inches $0.75 


Animal  Breeding 

By  THOMAS  SHAW.  This  book  is  the  most  complete  and 
comprehensive  work  ever  published  on  the  subject  of  which 
it  treats.  It  is  the  first  book  which  has  systematized  the 
subject  of  animal  breeding.  The  leading  laws  which  govern 
this  most  intricate  question  the  author  has  boldly  defined  and 
authoritatively  arranged.  The  chapters  which  he  has  written 
on  the  more  involved  features  of  the  subject,  as  sex  and  the 
relative  influence  of  parents,  should  go  far  toward  setting  at 
rest  the  wildly  speculative  views  cherished  with  reference  te 
these  questions.  The  striking  originality  in  the  treatment  of 
the  subject  is  no  less  conspicuous  than  the  superb  order  and 
regular  sequence  of  thought  from  the  beginning  to  the  end 
of  the  book.  The  book  is  intended  to  meet  the  needs  of  all 
persons  interested  in  the  breeding  and  rearing  of  live  stock. 
Illustrated.  405  pages.  5x7  inches.  Cloth.  »  .  $1.50 

Forage  Crops  Other  than  Grasses 

By  THOMAS  SHAW.  How  to  cultivate,  harvest  and  use 
them.  Indian  corn,  sorghum,  clover,  leguminous  plants, 
crops  of  the  brassica  genus,  the  cereals,  millet,  field  roots, 
etc.  Intensely  practical  and  reliable.  Illustrated.  287  pages. 
5x7  inches.  Cloth $1.00 

Soiling  Crops  and  the  Silo 

By  THOMAS  SHAW.  The  growing  and  feeding  of  all  kinds 
of  soiling  crops,  conditions  to  which  they  are  adapted,  their 
plan  in  the  rotation,  etc.  Not  a  line  is  repeated  from  the 
Forage  Crops  book.  Best  methods  of  building  the  silo,  filling 
it  and  feeding  ensilage.  Illustrated.  364  pages.  5x7  inches. 
Cloth $1.50 

The  Study  of  Breeds 

By  THOMAS  SHAW.  Origin,  history,  distribution,  charac- 
teristics, adaptability,  uses  and  standards  of  excellence  of  all 
pedigreed  breeds  of  cattle,  sheep  and  swine  in  America.  The 
accepted  text  book  in  colleges,  and  the  authority  for  farmers 
and  breeders.  Illustrated.  371  pages.  5x7  inches. 
Cloth $1.50 

Clovers  and  How  to  Grow  Them 

By  THOMAS  SHAW.  This  is  the  first  book  published  which 
treats  on  the  growth,  cultivation  and  treatment  of  clovers  as 
applicable  to  all  parts  of  the  United  States  and  Canada,  and 
which  takes  up  the  entire  subject  in  a  systematic  way  and 
consecutive  sequence.  The  importance  of  clover  in  the  econ- 
omy of  the  farm  is  so  great  that  an  exhaustive  work  on  this 
subject  will  no  doubt  be  welcomed  by  students  in  agriculture, 
as  well  as  by  all  who  are  interested  in  the  tilling  of  the  soil. 
Illustrated.  5x7  inches.  337  pages.  Cloth.  Net  .  .  .$1.00 


Land  Draining 

A  handbook  for  farmers  on  the  principles  and  practice  of 
draining,  by  MANLY  MILES,  giving  the  results  of  his  extended 
experience  in  laying  tile  drains.  The  directions  for  the  laying 
out  and  the  construction  of  tile  drains  will  enable  the  farmer 
to  avoid  the  errors  of  imperfect  construction,  and  the  disap- 
pointment that  must  necessarily  follow.  This  manual  for 
practical  farmers  will  also  be  found  convenient  for  reference 
in  regard  to  many  questions  that  may  arise  in  crop  growing, 
aside  from  the  special  subjects  of  drainage  of  which  it  treats. 
Illustrated.  200  pages.  5x7  inches.  Cloth.  .  .  $1.00 

Barn  Plans  and  Outbuildings 

Two  hundred  and  fifty-seven  illustrations.  A  most  valu- 
able work,  full  of  ideas,  hints,  suggestions,  plans,  etc.,  for  the 
construction  of  barns  and  outbuildings,  by  practical  writers. 
Chapters  are  devoted  to  the  economic  erection  and  use  of 
barns,  grain  barns,  horse  barns,  cattle  barns,  sheep  barns,  corn-8 
houses,  smokehouses,  icehouses,  pig  pens,  granariei,  etc. 
There  are  likewise  chapters  on  birdhouses,  doghouses,  tool 
sheds,  ventilators,  roofs  and  roofing,  doors  and  fastenings, 
workshops,  poultry  houses,  manure  sheds,  barnyards,  root 
pits,  etc.  235  pages.  5x7  inches.  Cloth.  .  .  .  $1.00 

Irrigation  Farming 

By  LUTE  WILCOX.  A  handbook  for  the  practical  applica- 
tion of  water  in  the  production  of  crops.  A  complete  treatise 
on  water  supply,  canal  construction,  reservoir  and  ponds, 
pipes  for  irrigation  purposes,  flumes  and  their  structure, 
methods  of  applying  water,  irrigation  of  field  crops,  the 
garden,  the  orchard  and  vineyard,  windmills  and  pumps, 
appliances  and  contrivances.  New  edition,  revised,  enlarged 
and  rewritten.  Profusely  illustrated.  Over  500  pages.  5x7 
inches.  Cloth $2.00 

Forest  Planting 

By  H.  NICHOLAS  JARCHOW,  LL.D.  A  treatise  on  the  care 
of  woodlands  and  the  restoration  of  the  denuded  timber-lands 
on  plains  and  mountains.  The  author  has  fully  described 
those  European  methods  which  have  proved  to  be  most  useful 
in  maintaining  the  superb  forests  of  the  old  world.  This 
experience  has  been  adapted  to  the  different  climates  and  trees 
of  America,  full  instructions  being  given  for  forest  planting 
of  our  various  kinds  of  soil  and  subsoil,  whether  on  mountain 
or  valley.  Illustrated.  250  pages.  5x7  inches.  Cloth.  $1.50 


Farmer's  Cyclopedia 
of  Agriculture   0   0 

A  Compendium  of  Agricultural  Science  and  Practice 
on  Farm,  Orchard  and  Garden  Crops,  and  the 
Feeding  and  Diseases  of  Farm  Animals 

*By  EARLEY  VERNON  WILCOX,  Ph.  D. 
and  CLARENCE  BEAMAN  SMITH,  M.S. 

Associate  Editors  in  the  Office  of  Experiment  Stations,  United  States 
'Department  of  Agriculture. 

HIS   is   a  new,   practical   and   complete  pres- 
entation   of    the    whole    subject    of    agricul- 
ture  in   its  broadest  sense.     It  is   designed 
for    the    use    of    agriculturists    who    desire 
up-to-date,      reliable     information     on     all 
matters    pertaining    to    crops    and    stock,    but    more 
particularly    for    the    actual    farmer.      The    volume 
contains 

Detailed  directions  for  the  culture  of  every 
important  field,  orchard,  and  garden  crop 

grown  in  America,  together  with  descriptions  of 
their  chief  insect  pests  and  fungous  diseases,  and 
remedies  for  their  control.  It  contains  an  account 
of  modern  methods  in  feeding  land  handling  all 
farm  stock,  including  poultry.  The  diseases  which 
affect  different  farm  animals  and  poultry  are  de- 
scribed, and  the  most  recent  remedies  suggested  for 
controlling  them. 

Every  bit  of  this  vast  mass  of  new  and  useful 
information  is  authoritative,  practical,  and  easily 
found,  and  no  effort  has  been  spared  to  include  all 
desirable  details.  There  are  between  6,000  and  7,000 
topics  covered  in  these  references,  and  it  contains 
700  royal  8vo  pages  and  nearly  500  superb  half- 
tone and  other  original  illustrations,  making  the 
most  perfect  Cyclopedia  of  Agriculture  ever  at- 
tempted. 

bound   in    cloth.  $3.50:   half  morocco 
sumptuous),  $4.50,  postpaid 


ORANGE  JUDD  COMPANY, 


N.V. 


•-GWBi.^ 


YB  47529 


